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UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 


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BENJAMIN  PARKE  AVERY. 


(jII-T  ok  MRS.  AVERY. 


Accessions  No.  (p^/Q  {        C/tiss  No. 


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THE    HUDSON, 


THE    WILDERNESS    TO    THE    SEA. 


BENSON  J.  LOSSING. 


ILLUSTRATED  BY  THREE  HUNDRED  AND  SIX  ENGRAVINGS  ON  WOOD, 

FHOM  DKAWIXGS  BY  TUE  AUTHOK, 

AND    A    FEONTISPIECE     ON     STEEL. 

(triri7SRSIT7] 

NirW'"  TOEK:      • 
VIETUE      AND      YORSTON. 


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^3701 

Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congres?,  in  the  year  1866, 

By    virtue     &    yOESTON, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  Stales  for  the  Southern 

Distiict  of  New  York. 


PllEFACE. 


HE  pen  and  pencil  sketelies  of  the  Hudson  River 
and  its  associations  contained  in  this  Yoliune, 
vrere  made  by  the  writer  a  few  years  ago,  and 
were  published  in  a  series  of  numbers  of  the 
London  Art- Journal  (for  which  they  were  origi- 
nally j^rei^ared)  during  the  years  18G0  and  1861.  They 
have  been  revised  by  the  writer  for  publication  in  the 
l^rcsent  form,  changes  in  persons  and  things  requiring 
such  revision. 
It  is  impossible  to  give  in  pictures  so  necessarily  small  as  are 
those  which  illustrate  this  Volume,  an  adequate  idea  of  the  beautj^ 
and  grandeur  of  the  scenery  of  the  Hudson  River ;  so,  in  the 
choice  of  subjects,  the  judgment  was  governed  more  by  considera- 
tions of  utility  than  of  mere  artistic  taste.  Onlj^  such  objects  have 
been  delineated  and  described  as  bore  relations  to  the  history, 
traditions,  and  business  life  of  the  river  here  celebrated,  whose 
course,  from  the  Wilderness  to  the  Sea,  measures  a  distance 
of  full  three  hundred  miles. 

The  reader  will  bear  in  mind  that  when  the  present  tense  is 
used,  allusion  is  made  to  the  beginning  of  the  j^ear  1866,  at  which 
time  the  revision  of  these  sketches  was  made. 

B.  J.  L. 


PorOHKEEPSlE,  N.T.,  March,  ISHIi. 


>' 


[UFI71ESIT' 
LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Initial  Letter— The  Cardinal  Flower  and 

Moosehead 1 

A  Lodge  in  the  Wilderness 7 

Eaquette  River      9 

Tenants  of  the  Upper  Hudson  Forests     ...  10 

Camp  Helena 12 

Sabattis    13 

Hendrick  Spring    14 

Swamp  Travel 16 

Catlin  Lake    16 

First  Clearing  on  the  Hudson     17 

First  Saw-Mill  on  the  Hudson    18 

Elephant  Island     10 

Lumber  Dam  and  Sluice      19 

Initial  Letter— The  SVayside  Fountain    ...  21 

Rapids  at  the  Head  of  Harris's  Lake       ...  22 

Sandford  Lake       23 

The  Iron  Dam 25 

Adirondack  Village       26 

Departure  foe  Tahawus 2S 

First  Bridge  over  the  Hudson     29 

Bark  Cabin  at  Calamity  Pond    30 

Henderson's  Monument       31 

Fall  in  the  Opalescent  River       33 

Climbing  Tahawus        34 

Spring  on  the  Peak  of  Tahawus 35 

Hospice  on  the  Peak  of  Tahawus      36 

Initial  Letter— A  Sap  Trough    40 

The  Loon 41 

Lake  Colden 42 

Outlet  of  Henderson  Lake 43 

Trees  on  Boulders 44 

Adu-ondack,  or  Indian  Pass 45 

Henderson's  I^ake 46 

Out  of  the  Wilderness 49 

Moose  Horns 50 

Outlet  of  Paradox  Lake       51 

Isola  Bella       52 

Stump-Macliine      54 

View  at  Warrensbiu-g 55 

Confluence  of  tlie  Hudson  and  ScaiTon     ...  56 

Fort  William  Henry  Hotel 57 

Initial  Letter— Cavern  at  Glen's  Falls      ...  59 

Falls  at  Luzerne     60 

Masque  Alonge      61 


Luzenie  Lake 

Confluence  of  the  Hudson  aud  Sacandaga . 
Kah-chc-bon-cook,  or  Jesup's  Great  Falls  . 
The  Hudson  ueai-  the  Queensbury  Line  ... 

The  Great  Boom    

Glen's  Fulls     

Below  the  Bridge  at  Glen's  Falls      

Baker's  Falls 

Ground-plan  of  Fort  Kdward      

The  Jenny  M'Crea  Tree      

Balm-of-Gilead  Tree     

View  at  Fort  Edward    

*' Cob-Money"        

Fort  Miller  Rapids ... 

Initial  Letter— Canal  Bridge  and  Boat  ... 
Canal  Bridge  across  the  Hudson  above  the 

Saratoga  Dam     

Confluence  of  the  Hudson  and  Batten-Kill 
Di-on-on-deh-o-wa,  or  Great  Falls  of  the 

Batten-Kill ... 

The  Reidesel  House      

Cellar  of  Reidesel  House     

Riipids  of  the  Fish  Creek,  at  Sch«yler%*ille 

The  Schuyler  Mtinsion 

Scene  of  Burgoyne's  Surrender 

Gates's  Head-quaiters 

Rope  Ferry      

Burgoyne's  Encampment  (from   a  Print 

published  in  London,  in  1779) 

House  in  which  General  Eraser  died 

Eraser's  Burial-place     

Neilson's  House,  Berais's  Heights    

Room  occupied  by  Major  Ackland    

Relics  from  the  Battle  Field       

Derrick  Swart's  House  at  StUIwater 

Viaduct  of  the  Vermont  Central  Railway  . 
Waterford  and  Lansingburgh  Bridge 

View  at  Cohoes  Falls    

Lock  at  State  Dam,  Troy     

Vanderhey den  House 

Rensselaer  and  Saratoga  Railway  Bridge  . 

View  of  Troy  from  Mount  Ida 

United  States  Arsenal  at  VVatervliet 

Schuyler  House  at  the  Flats       

Van  Rensselaer  Manor  House    


IGE 

62 

62 

63 

65 

66 

69 

70* 

73 

74 

77 


81 
83 


84 
g5 


87 
88 
90 
93 
94 
96 

97 
'93 

99 
100 
103 
104 
1P5 
107 
108 
110 
112 
113 
114 
115 
116 
117 
119 


VI 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Van  Rensselaer  Amis 

Old  Dutch  Church  in  Albany      

Street  View  in  Ancient  Albany 

Vanderheydcn  Palace 

Fort  Frederick 

General  Schuyler's  Mansion  in  Albany 

Staircase  in  Schuyler's  Mansion 

The  State  Capiiol 

Canal  Basin  at  Albany  .. 
The  Dudley  Observatory 
Greenbush  Railway  Station 
View  near  the  Overslagh 

Coxsakie  

Fishing  Station— Sturgeon,  Shad,  Bass 
View  from  the  Promenade,  Hudson  ... 
Athens,  from  the  Hudson  Iron  Works 

View  at  Kalz-Kill  Landing 

Entrance  to  the  Katzbergs 

Hip  Van  Winkle's  Cabin      

Mountain  House,  from  the  Road 

A'iew  from  South  Jlouiitain 

Kalers-Kill  Falls    

The  Fawn's  Leap 

Scene  at  the  Kuters-KiU,  near  Palensvillc 

Old  Clermont 

Clermont 

View  at  De  Koven's  Bay     

The  Clermont 

Livingston's  Mansion  at  Tivoli 

Mouth  of  Esopus  Creek,  Saugerties  ... 

St,  Stephen's  College    

Montgomery  Place       

The  Katzbergs  from  Montgomery  Place 

liokeb)'    

Beekman's  House 

Ellerslie 

View  from  Wildercliff 

Kingston 

Rondont  Creek       

Placentia 

Poughkeepsie,  from  Lewisbui'g 

Van  Kleek  House 

The  Higldands,  from  Poughkeepsie  ... 

Locust  Grove 

Milton  Ferrj'  and  Horse-Boat     .-,     ... 

New  Hamburg  Tunnel 

The  Arbor  Vita     

Marlborough,  from  the  Lime-Kilns  ... 

]\Iouth  of  Wappingi's  Creek        

Washington's  Head -quarters  at  Ncwbui'gh 
Interior  of  Washington's  Head-quarters  . 

Life-Guard  Monument .*    ...    . 

Newburgh  Bay       

Fishkill  Landing  and  Newburgh       ...     . 

Idlewild  from  the  Brook      , 

In  the  Glen  at  ItUewild 

Upper  Entrance  to  the  Highlands     ...    , 


'AGE 

121 
122 
124 
125 
127 
129 
131 
133 
134 
137 
130 
142 
144 
145 
147 
148 
149 
151 
153 
15(5 
1.^9 
162 
lfi4 
Uio 
167 
168 
170 
170 
171 
172 
173 
174 
175 
17<5 
177 
173 
179 
1S2 
ISi 
1S6 
187 
189 
190 
191 
192 
193 
194 
195 
196 
199 
200 
201 
202 
203 
204 
205 
207 


PAGE 

At  the  Foot  of  the  Stomi  King 209 

"  The  Powell  "  off  the  Stonn  King  Valley  210 

Scene  off  the  Storm  King  Valley      211 

Highland  Entrance  to  Newburgh  Bay     ...  212 

Northem  View  from  the  Stonn  King       ...  214 

Southern  View  from  the  Storm  King       ...  21fj 

Kidd's  Plug  Cliff    217 

Crow's  Nest    213 

Cadet's  Monument       221 

Cold  Spring,  from  the  Cemeterj-       222 

West  Point,  from  the  Cemetery       223 

Fort  Putnam,  from  the  West     224 

'^'iew  from  Fort  Putnam      225 

Lieutenant-Colonel  Wood's  Monument  ...  226 

View  fi-om  the  Siege  Battery     227 

The  Great  Chain    228 

Westeni  ■\'iew,  from  Roe's  Hotel     229 

ThePai-ade     „ 230 

Kosciuszko's  Monument     231 

Dade's  Command's  Monument 232 

Kosciuszko's  Garden     233 

View  from  Battery  Knox    234 

The  Beverly  House       236 

The  Staircase  of  the  Robinsons'  House    ...  240 

The  Indian  Falls    241 

A'iew  South  from  Dutilh's 242 

Indian  Brook 243 

View  from  Rossitev's  Mansion 245 

West  Point  Foundrj'     247 

Undercliff       213 

Ruins  of  Batten,'  on  Constitution  Island  ...  250 

A'iew  at  Garrison's        251 

Cozzens's 252 

Church  of  the  Holy  Innocents    253 

The  Road  to  Cozzeus's  Dock      254 

Buttennilk  Falls    255 

Upper  Cascades,  Buttermilk  Falls      256 

Beverly  Dock 257 

Lower  Entrance  to  the  Highlands,  from 

Peek's  Kill 260 

Falls  in  Fort  Montgomery  Creek      261 

Scene  in  Fort  Montgomery  Creek    262 

Lake  Sinnipink      263 

,  Anthony's  Nose  and  the  Sugar  Loaf,  from 

the  Ice  Dei^'it     265 

Tunnel  at  Anthony's  Nose 266 

The  Brocken  Kill 263 

Rattlesnake     269 

Tunnel  at  Flat  Pohit     270 

lona,  from  the  Railway       271 

Bonder  Berg  Point       273 

Tl»e  Peek's  Kill     275 

Skaters  on  Peek's  Kill  Bay 276 

Winter  Fishing      279 

Fishermen,  from  the  Old  Lime-Kilns       ...  280 

Tomkins's  Lime-Kilns  and  QuaiTy 231 

Stony  Point    232 


PAGE 

Stony  Point  Lighthouse  and  Fog-Bell      ...    2S3 
Verplanck's    Point,    from    Stony    Point 

Lighthouse 2S5 

Grassy  Point  and  Tom  Mtmiitain      2S6 

Smith's  House  on  Treason  Hill 293 

Meeting-place  of  Andre  and  Arnold 292 

Sleigh  Riding  on  the  Hudson     2% 

Croton  Aqueduct  at  Sing  Sing 297 

State  Prison  at  Sing  Sing    299 

State  Prisoners      300 

Croton  Point,  from  Sing  Sing    304 

Rockland,  or  Slaughterer's  Landing 305 

Rockland  Lake       306 

Mouth  of  the  Croton     307 

Croton  Dam     309 

Ventilators      310 

High  Bridge  over  the  Croton      311 

Van  Cortlandt  Manor  House       312 

View  from  Pri<:kly  Pear  Hill      316 

The  Pori^oise 317 

General  Ward's  Mansion    318 

Ancient  Dutch  Church 320 

Sleepy  Hollow  Bridge 321 

Ir\ing'3  Grave        32-1 

PliUipse's  Mill-Dam      327 

Philipse  Castle       323 

Distant  View  at  Tarrj'town 329 

View  on   the    Po-can-le-co  from   Ining 

Park     330 

Monument  at  TaiTjtown     331 

Washington's  Head-quarters  at  Tappan  ...     336 

Andre's  Pen  and  Ink  Sketch       338 

Andi-e's  Monument       339 

Paulding  Manor     340 

Sunnyside        342 

Irving's  Study 343 

The  Brook  at  Sunnyside      346 

The  Pond,  or  "  Mediterranean  Sea  "       ...    347 
WuU'ert's  Roost  when  Irving  purchased  it     350 

View  at  Ii'vington 351 

Xevis 355 

View  at  Dobbs's  Ferry         356 

A'iew  near  Hastings      357 

Living-ston  Mansion      358 

The  Palisades        359 

Philipse  Manor  Hall      363 

1  he  "  Half-Moon  "       363 

Font  Hill 365 

Mount  St.  Vincent  Academy      ...    366 

Spyt  den  Duyvel  Creek        '  367 

The  Century  House      369 

The  High  Biidge 372 

Tiie  Harlem  River,  from  the  Morris  House    373 

The  Morris  Mansion 374 

The  Grange     375 

View  on  Washington  Heights    378 

JefEerj-'s  Hook       379 


Asylum  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb 

Audubon  s  Residence    

View  in  Trinity  Cemetery 

Manhattanville,  from  Claremont 

Clai-emont       

View  on  Bloomingdale  Road      

Asylum  for  the  Insane 

Elm  Park  in  1361 

Orphan  Asylum.      

Harlem  Plains       

View  in  Central  Park    

The  Terrace  Bridge  and  Mall    

A  Squatter  Village        

Provoost's  Tomb— Jones's  Woods     ... 

View  near  Hell-Gate    

The  Beekman  Mansion        

Turtle  Bay  and  Blackwell's  Island    ... 

The  Resen'oir,  Fifth  Avenue     

Fifth  Avenue  Hotel,  Madison  Park  ... 
Worth's  Monument      


PAGE 

...  380 

...  332 

,..  385 

...  336 

...  387 

...  389 

...  390 

...  391 

...  394 

...  395 

...  396 

...  399 

...  400 

...  401 

...  403 

...  406 

...  407 

...  408 

...  409 

...  413 

Union  Park     415 

Stuj-vesant  Pear  Tree 416 

Stuyvesant's  House       417 

St.  Mark's  Church  and  Historical  Society 

House 413 

Bible  House,  Cooper  Institute,  and  CUnton 

Hall      419 

Washington's  Residence  as  it  appeared  in 

1850       421 

Franklin  Square     423 

Broadway  at  St.  Paul's 424 

Soldiers'  Monument  in  Trinity  Churchyard  426 
Seals  of  New  Amsterdam  and  New  York...  427 
Dutch  Mansion  and  Cottage  in  New  Am- 
sterdam         423 

The  Bowling  Green  and  Fort  George  in  1783  429 

The  Bowling  Green  in  1361 431 

The  Battery  and  Castle  Garden 432 

Old  Federal  HaU   433 

Hudson  River  Steamers  leaving  New  York  434 

View  near  Nyack 436 

View  from  Fort  Lee      433 

Bull's  FeiTy     440 

Duelling  Ground,  Weehawk       448 

View  at  the  Elysian  Fields 450 

Stevens^s  Floating  Battery 451 

Jersey  City  and  Cunaixi  Dock    453 

Brooklyn  Ferry  and  Heights      454 

Nav)'  Yard,  BrookljTi    ... 455 

&5'lvan  Water,  Greenwood 456 

Governor's  and  Bedloe's  Islands       457 

The  Narrows,  from  Quarantine 453 

Fort  Lafayette       459 

Fort  Hamilton        460 

Surf  Bathing,  Coney  Island 461 

Sandy  Hook,  from  the  Ship  Channel       ...  462 

Sandy  Hook,  from  the  Lighthouses 463 


^ 


^^ 


'V'      0?  THH 

[TJiriVEESI 


T7l 


THE  HUDSON, 


FROM   THE   WILDERNESS  TO   THE   SEA. 


V  ir  A  r  T  E  i^   I . 

T  is  proposed  to  present,  in  a  series  of  sketches 
wit}i  pen  and  pencil,  pictures  of  the  Hud- 
son   Kiver,    from    its    birth    among    the 
mountains  to  its  marriage  with  the  ocean. 
It  is  by  tar  the  most  interesting  river  in 
■    America,  considering  the  beauty  and  mag- 
!    nificcncc  of  its  scenery,  its  natural,  political, 
and   social   history,  tlie   agricultural   and 
mini'ral  treasures  of  its  vicinage,  the  eom- 
:    mercial  wealth   hourly  floating  upon  its 
i-   bosom,  and  the  relations  of  its  geography 
and  topography  to  some  of  the  most  ira- 
poitant  events  in  the  history  of  the  Western  hemisphere. 

High  upon  the  walls  of  the  governor's  room  in  the  New  York  City 
Hall  is  a  dingy  painting  of  a  broad-headed,  short-haired,  sparsely-bearded 
man,  with  an  enornious  rutflo  about  his  neck,  and  bearing  the  impress 
of  an  iutelleetual,  courtly  gentleman  of  the  days  of  King  James  the  Fii'st 
of  England.  By  whom  it  was  painted  nobody  knows,  but  conjecture 
shrewdly  guesses  that  it  was  delineated  by  the  hand  of  Paxil  Van 
Someren,  the  sldlful  Flemish  artist  who  painted  the  portraits  of  many 
persons  of  distinction  in  Amsterdam  and  London,  in  the  reign  of  James, 
and  died  in  the  British  capital  four  years  before  that  monarch.     We  are 

n 


THE   HUDSON. 


■well  assured  that  it  is  the  portrait  of  an.  eminent  navigator,  who,  in  that 
remarkable  year  in.  the  history  of  England  and  America,  one  thousand  six 
hundi-ed  and  seven,  met  "  certaine  worshippeful  merchants  of  London," 
in  the  parlour  of  a  son  of  Sir  Thomas  Gresham,  in  Bishopsgate  Street, 
and  bargained  concerning  a  proposed  voyage  in  search  of  a  north-east 
passage  to  India,  between  the  icy  and  rock-bound  coasts  of  Nova  Zerabla 
and  Spitzbergeu. 

That  navigator  "was  Henry  Hudsox,  a  friend  of  Captain  John  Smith,  a 
man  of  science  and  liberal  vievfs,  and  a  pupil,  perhaps,  of  Drake,  or 
Frobisher,  or  G-renville,  in  the  seaman's  art.  On  May-day  morning  lie 
knelt  in  the  church  of  St.  Ethelburga,  and  partook  of  the  Sacrament ;  and 
soon  afterward  he  left  the  Thames  for  the  circumijolar  waters.  During 
two  voyages  he  battled  the  ice-pack  manfully  off  the  North  Cape,  but  with- 
out success  :  boreal  frosts  were  too  intense  for  the  brine,  and  cast  impene- 
trable ice-barriers  across  the  eastern  pathway  of  the  sea.  His  employers 
praised  the  na^'igator's  skill  and  courage,  but,  losing  faith  in  the  scheme, 
the  undertaking  was  abandoned.  Hu<lson  went  to  Holland  with  a  stout 
heart ;  and  the  Dutch  East  India  Company,  then  sending  their  uncouth 
argosies  to  every  sea,  gladly  employed  "the  bold  Englishman,  the  expert 
pilot,  and  famous  navigator,"  of  whose  fame  they  had  heard  so  much. 

At  the  middle  of  March,  1609,  Hendrick,  as  the  Dutch  called  him, 
sailed  from  Amsterdam  in  a  yacht  of  ninety  tons,  named  the  Half-Moon, 
manned  with  a  choice  crew,  and  turned  his  prow,  once  more,  toward 
Nova  Zembla.  Again  ice,  and  fogs,  and  fierce  tempests,  disputed  his 
passage,  and  he  steered  westward,  passed  Cape  Farewell,  and,  on  the  2nd 
of  July,  made  sounduigs  upon  the  banks  of  Newfoundland.  He  sailed 
along  the  coast  to  the  fine  harbour  of  Charleston,  iu  South  Carolina,  in 
search  of  a  north-west  passage  "  below  Virginia,"  spoken  of  by  his  friend 
Captain  Smith.  Disappointed,  ho  turned  northward,  discovered  Delaware 
Lay,  and  on  the  3rd  of  September  anchored  near  Sandy  Hook.  On  llie 
lltli  he  passed  through  the  Narrows  into  the  present  bay  of  New  York, 
and  from  his  anchorage  beheld,  with  joy,  wonder,  and  hope,  the  waters  of 
the  noble  Mahicannituck,  or  Mohegan  Eiver,  flowing  from  the  high  blue 
hills  on  the  north.  Toward  evening  the  following  day  he  entered  the 
broad  stream,  and  with  a  full  persuasion,  on  account  of  tidal  currents, 


THE    HUDSON. 


that  the  river  upou  which  he  was  borne  flowed  from  ocean  to  ocean,  he 
rejoiced  in  the  dream  of  being  the  leader  to  the  long-sought  Cathay. 
But  when  the  magnificent  highlands,  fifty  miles  from  the  sea,  were  passed, 
and  the  stream  narrowed  and  tlie  water  freshened,  hope  failed  him.  But 
the  indescribable  beauty  of  the  virgin  laud  through  which  he  was 
voyag;ing,  filled  his  heart  and  mind  with  exuuisite  pleasure ;  and  as 
deputations  of  dusky  men  came  from  the  courts  of  the  forest  sachems  to 
visit  him,  in  wonder  and  awe,  he  seemed  transformed  into  some  majestic 
and  mysterious  hero  of  the  old  sagas  of  the  North. 

The  yacht  anchored  near  the  shore  where  Albany  now  stands,  but  a 
boat's  crew,  accompanied  by  Hudson,  went  on,  and  beheld  the  waters  of 
the  Mohawk  foaming  among  the  rocks  at  Cohoes.  Then  back  to  New 
York  Bay  the  navigator  sailed ;  and  after  a  parting  salutation  with  the 
chiefs  of  the  Manhattans  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  and  taking  formal 
possession  of  the  country  in  the  name  of  the  government  of  Holland,  he 
departed  for  Europe,  to  teU  of  the  glorious  region,  filled  ■n'ith  fur-bearing 
animals,  beneath  the  parallels  of  the  North  Virginia  Charter.  He  landed 
in  England,  but  sent  his  log-book,  charts,  and  a  full  account  of  his 
voyage  to  his  employers  at  Amsterdam.  King  James,  jealous  because  of 
the  advantages  which  the  Dutch  might  derive  from  these  discoveries,  kept 
Hudson  a  long  time  iu  England ;  but  the  Hollanders  had  all  necessary 
information,  and  very  soon  ships  of  the  company  and  of  private  adventurers 
were  anchored  in  the  waters  of  the  Mahicannituck,  and  receiving  the 
wealth  of  the  forests  from  the  wild  men  who  inhabited  them.  The 
Dutchmen  and  the  Indians  became  friends,  close-bound  by  the  cohesion 
of  trade.  The  river  was  named  Mauritius,  in  honour  of  the  Stadtholder 
of  the  Xctherlands,  and  the  seed  of  a  great  empire  was  planted  there. 

The  English,  in  honour  of  their  countryman  who  discovered  it,  called 
it  Hudson's  River,  and  to  the  present  time  that  title  has  been  maintained ; 
but  not  without  continual  rivalry  with  that  of  North  River,  given  it  by 
the  early  Dutch  settlers  after  the  discovery  of  the  Delaware,  which  was 
named  South  Eiver.  It  is  now  as  often  called  North  River  as  Hudson  in 
the  common  transactions  of  trade,  names  of  corporations,  &c.  ;  but  these, 
with  Americans,  being  convertible  titles,  produce  no  confusion. 

Eor  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  after  its  discovery,  the  Hudson,  above 


THE    HUDSON. 


Albanj-,  was  little  known  to  white  men,  excepting  hunters  and  trappers, 
and  a  few  isolated  settlers  ;  and  the  knowledge  of  its  sources  among  lofty 
alpine  ranges  is  one  of  the  re^■olations  made  to  the  present  century,  and 
even  to  the  present  generation.  And  now  very  few,  excepting  the 
hunters  of  that  region,  have  personal  knowledge  of  the  beauty  and  wild 
grandeur  of  lake,  and  forest,  and  mountain,  out  of  which  spring  the 
fountains  of  the  river  we  are  about  to  describe.  To  these  fountains  and 
their  forest  courses  I  made  a  pilgrimage  toward  the  close  of  the  summer 
of  18o9,  accompanied  by  Mrs.  Lossing  and  Mr.  S.  M.  Buckingham,  an 
American  gentleman,  formerly  engaged  in  mercantile  business  in  Man- 
chester, England,  and  who  has  travelled  extensively  in  the  East. 

Uur  little  company,  composed  of  the  minimum  in  the  old  prescription 
for  a  dinner-party — not  more  than  the  Muses  nor  less  than  the  Graces- 
left  our  homes,  in  the  pleasant  rural  city  of  Poughkeepsic,  on  the  Hudson, 
for  the  wildernesss  of  uortliern  New  York,  by  a  route  which  we  are 
satisfied,  by  experience  and  observation,  to  be  the  best  for  the  tourist  or 
sportsman  bound  for  the  head  wateVs  of  that  river,  or  the  high  plateau 
northward  and  westward  of  them,  wdiere  lie  in  solitary  beauty  a  multitude 
of  lakes  filled  with  delicious  fish,  and  eudjosomed  in  primeval  forests 
abounding  with  deer  and  other  game.  We  travelled  by  railway  about 
one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  to  Whitehall,  a  small  village  in  a  rocky 
gorge,  where  Wood  Creek  leaps  in  cascades  into  the  head  of  Lake  Cham- 
plain.  There  we  tarried  until  the  following  morning,  and  at  ten  o'clock 
embarked  upon  a  steamboat  for  Port  Kent — our  point  of  departure  for  the 
wild  interior,  far  down  the  lake  on  its  western  border.  The  day  was 
flue,  and  the  shores  of  the  lake,  clustered  with  historical  associations, 
presented  a  series  of  heautiful  pictures ;  for  they  were  rich  with  forest 
verdure,  the  harvests  of  a  fruitful  seed-time,  and  thrifty  villages  and 
farmhouses.  Behind  these,  on  the  east,  arose  the  lofty  ranges  of  the 
Green  Mountains,  in  Vermont ;  and  on  the  west  were  the  Adirondacks  of 
New  York,  whither  we  were  journeying,  their  clustering  peaks,  distant 
and  shadowy,  bathed  in  the  C'llden  light  of  a  summer  afternoon. 

Lake  Champlain  is  deep  and  narrow,  aud  one  hundred  and  forty  mile 
in  length.     It  received  its  present  name  from  its  discoverer,  the  eminent 
French  navigator,  Samuel  Champlain,  who  was  upon  its  waters  tlie  same 


THE    HUDSON. 


year  wlien  Hudson  sailed  up  tlie  riviT  which  bears  his  name.  Chaniplain 
came  from  the  north,  and  Hudson  from  the  south  ;  and  they  penetrated 
the  -wiklerness  to  points  within  a  hun(h'ed  miles  of  each  other.  Long 
before,  the  Indians  had  given  it  the  significant  title  of  Can-i-a-de-ri  Gaa- 
nm-te,  the  Door  of  the  Country.  The  appropriateness  of  this  name  will 
bo  illustrated  hereafter. 

It  was  evening  when  we  arrived  at  Fort  Kent.  We  remained  until 
morning  with  a  friend  Winslow  C.  Watson,  Es(|.,  a  descendant  of 
Governor  Winslow,  who  came  to  Xcw  England  in  the  Ma>jfloa-er),  whose 
personal  explorations  and  general  knowledge  of  the  region  wc  were 
about  to  visit,  enabled  him  to  give  us  information  of  much  value  in  our 
subsc(j^uent  course.  With  liimself  and  family  we  visited  the  wuUed  banks 
of  the  Great  An  liable,  near  Kceseville,  and  stood  with  wonder  and  awe 
at  the  bottom  of  a  terrific  gorge  in  sandstone,  rent  by  an  earthquake's 
power,  and  a  foaming  river  rushing  at  our  feet.  The  gorge,  for  more 
than  a  mile,  is  from  thirty  to  forty  feet  in  width,  and  over  one  hundred 
in  depth.  This  was  our  first  experience  of  the  wild  scenery  of  the  north. 
The  tourist  should  never  pass  it  unnoticed. 

Oui'  direct  route  from  Kceseville  lay  along  the  picturesque  valley  of  the 
Great  Au  Sable  River,  a  stream  broken  along  its  entire  course  into  cascades, 
draining  about  seven  hundred  square  miles  of  mountain  country,  and 
falling  four  thousand  six  hundred  feet  in  its  passage  from  its  .springs  to 
Lake  Chaniplain,  a  distance  of  only  about  forty  miles.  We  made  a  detour 
of  a  few  miles  at  Kceseville  for  a  special  purpose,  entered  the  valley  at 
twilight,  and  passed  along  the  margin  of  the  rushing  waters  of  the  Au 
Sable  six  miles  to  the  Forksj  where  we  remained  until  morning.  The 
day  dawned  gloomily,  and  for  four  hours  we  rode  over  the  mountains 
toward  the  Saranac  River  in  a  drenching  rain,  for  which  we  were  too 
well  prepared  to  exijerience  any  inconvenience.  At  Fi'anklin  Palls,  on 
the  Saranac,  in  the  midst  of  the  wildest  mountain  scenery,  where  a  few 
years  before  a  forest  village  had  been  destroyed  by  fire,  we  dined  upon 
trout  and  venison,  the  common  food  of  the  wilderness,  and  then  rode  on 
toward  the  Lower  Saranac  Lake,  at  the  foot  of  which  we  ■were  destined  to 
leave  roads,  and  horses,  and  industrial  pursuits  behind,  and  live  upon  the 
solitary  lake  and  river,  and  in  the  almost  unbroken  woods. 


THE   HUDSON. 


The  clouds  were  scattered  early  in  tlic  afternoon,  but  lay  in  heavy 
masses  upon  the  summits  of  the  deep  liliie  mountains,  and  deprived  us  of 
the  iileasure  to  he  derived  from  distant  views  in  the  amphitheatre  of 
everlasting  hills  through  whicli  ^^•c  were  journeying.  Our  road  was  o\'er 
a  high  rolling  country,  fertile,  and  in  process  of  rapid  clearing.  The  log- 
houses  of  the  settlers,  and  the  cabins  of  the  charcoal  burners,  were 
frequently  seen  ;  and  in  a  beautiful  valley,  watered  by  a  branch  of  the 
Saranac,  we  passed  through  a  pleasant  village  called  Bloomingdale. 
Toward  evening  we  reached  the  sluggish  outlet  of  the  Saranac  Lakes, 
and  at  a  little  before  sunset  our  postilion  reined  up  at  Eaker's  Inn,  two 
miles  from  the  Lower  Lake,  and  iifty-one  from  Port  Kent.  To  the  lover 
and  student  of  nature,  the  artist  and  the  philosopher,  the  country  through 
which  we  had  passed,  and  to  which  only  brief  allusion  may  here  be  made, 
is  among  the  most  inviting  spots  upon  the  globe,  for  magnificent  and 
liicturesque  scenery',  mineral  wealth,  and  geological  wonders,  abound  on 
every  side. 

At  Baker's  Inn  every  comfort  for  a  reasonable  man  was  found.  Tliere 
we  jirocured  guides,  boats,  and  provisions  for  the  wilderness ;  and  at  a 
little  p;:st  noon  on  the  following  day  we  were  fairly  beyond  the  sounds  of 
the  setthments,  ujion  a  placid  lake  studded  with  islands,  the  sun  shining 
in  unclouded  splendour,  and  the  blue  peaks  of  distant  mountains  looming 
above  the  dense  forests  that  lay  in  gloomy  grandeur  between  us  and  their 
rugged  acclivities. 

Our  party  now  consisted  of  five,  two  guides  having  been  added  to  it. 
One  of  them  was  a  son  of  Mr.  Eaker,  the  other  a  pure-blooded  Penobscot 
Indian  from  the  state  of  Maine.  Each  had  a  light  boat — so  light  that  he 
might  carry  it  upon  his  shoulders  at  jiortages,  or  the  intervals  between 
the  navigable  portions  of  streams  or  lakes.  In  one  of  these  was  borne 
our  luggage,  provisions,  and  Mr.  liuckingbam,  and  in  the  other 
Mrs.  Lossing  and  myself. 

The  Saranac  Lakes  arc  three  iu  number,  and  lie  on  the  south-eastei'n 
borders  of  Franklin  County,  north  of  Mount  Seward.  They  are  known 
as  the  Upper,  Piound,  and  Lower.  The  latter,  over  which  we  first 
voyaged,  is  six  miles  in  length.  From  its  head  we  passed  along  a  winding 
and    narrow  river,   fi-inged  with  rushes,    lilies,   and  moose-head  plants, 


almost  to  the  central  or  Round  Lake,  where  wo  made  a  portage  of  a  few 
rods,  and  dined  beneath  a  towering  pine-tree.  "While  there,  two  deer- 
hounds,  whose  voices  we  had  heard  in  the  forest  a  few  minutes  before, 
came  dashing  up,  dripping  with  the  lake  water  through  which  they  had 
been  swimming,  and,  after  siiuffing  the  scent  of  our  food  wistfully  for 
a  moment,  disappeared  as  suddenly.  "We  crossed  Round  Lake,  three 
and  a  half  iiilirs,  and  went  up  a  narrow  river  about  a  mile,  to  the  fdls 


A  LODSE  IN  THE  WILDEEXESS. 


at  the  outlet  of  the  "Upper  Saranac.  Here,  twelve  miles  irom  our 
embarkation,  was  a  place  of  entertainment  for  tourists  and  sportsmen,  in 
the  midst  of  a  small  clearing.  A  portage  of  an  eighth  of  a  mile,  over 
which  the  boats  and  luggage  were  carried  upon  a  waggon,  brought  us  to 
the  foot  of  the  Upper  Lake.  On  this  dark,  wild  sheet  of  water,  thirteen 
miles  in  lengtli,  we  embarked  toward  the  close  of  the  day,  and  just  before 
sunset  reached  the  lodge  of  Corey,  a  liunter  and  guide  well  kuowu  in  all 
that  region.  It  stood  near  the  gravelly  shore  of  a  beautiful  bay  with  a 
large  island  in  its  bosom,  heavily  wooded  with  evergreens.  It  was 
Saturday  evening,  and  here,  in  this  rude  house  of  logs,  where  we  had 


THE    HUDSON. 


been  pleasantly  received  by  a  motlcst  and  genteel  young  woman,  wo 
resolved  to  spend  the  Sabbath.  Nor  did  wc  regret  our  resolution.  "We 
found  good  wilderness  accoramodations ;  and  at  midnight  the  hunter  came 
with  his  dogs  from  a  long  tramp  in  the  woods,  bringing  a  fresh-killed 
deer  upon  his  shoulders. 

Our  first  Sabbath  in  the  ^^■ilderuess  was  a  delightful  one.  It  was  a 
perfect  summer-day,  and  all  around  us  were  freshness  and  beauty.  We 
were  alone  with  God  and  His  works,  far  away  from  the  abodes  of  men ; 
and  ■^■hcn  at  evening  the  stars  came  out  one  by  one,  they  seemed  to  the 
communing  spirit  like  diamond  lamps  hung  up  in  the  dome  of  a  great 
cathecb-al,  in  which  we  had  that  day  worshipped  so  purely  and  lovingly. 
It  is  profitable,  as  Eryant  says,  to 

"Go  abroai-l 
Upon  tlie  paths  of  Katui'e,  aiid,  wlien  all    . 
Us  voices  whispei',  and  its  silent  tilings 
Ai'e  breatliiny:  the  deep  lieanty  of  tin?  woilil, 
Knee]  at  its  ample  altar." 

Early  on  Monday  morning  wo  resumed  our  journey.  We  walked  a 
mile  through  the  fresh  woods  to  the  upper  of  the  three  Spectacle  Ponds, 
on  which  we  were  to  embark  for  the  Eaquette  Eiver  and  Long  Lake. 
Our  boats  and  luggage  were  here  carried  upon  a  waggon  for  the  last  time ; 
tifter  that  they  were  all  borne  upon  the  shoulders  of  the  guides.  Here 
we  were  joined  by  another  guide,  with  his  boat,  who  was  returning  to  his 
liome,  near  the  head  waters  of  the  Hudson,  toward  which  we  were 
journeying.  The  guides  who  were  conducting  us  were  to  leave  us  at 
Long  Lake,  and  finding  the  one  who  had  joined  us  intelligent  and 
obliging,  and  well  acquainted  with  a  portion  of  the  region  we  wei'c  about 
to  explore,  we  engaged  him  for  the  remainder  of  our  wilderness  travel. 

The  Spectacle  Ponds  are  beautiful  sheets  of  water  in  the  forest,  lying 
near  each  other,  and  connected  by  shallow  streams,  through  which  the 
guides  waded  and  dragged  the  boats.  The  outlet — a  narrow,  sinuous 
stream,  and  then  shallow,  because  of  a  drought  that  was  prevailing  in  all 
that  northern  country — is  called  "  Stony  Brook."  After  a  course  of 
three  and  a  half  miles  through  wild  and  picturesque  scenery,  it  empties 
into  the  Eaquette  Eiver.     All  along  its  shores  we  saw  fresh  tracks  of  the 


THE    HUDSON. 


deer,  and  upon  its  banks  the  splendid  Cardinal  flower  [LoMia  cardinalis), 
glo-wing  like  flame,  was  seen  in  many  a  nook."^' 

Our  entrance  into  the  Eaquctte  was  so  qniet  and  unexpected,  that  we 


RAQUETTE  RIVER. 


were  not  aware  of  the  change  until  we  were  fairly  upon  its  broader 
bosom.     It  is  the   most  beautiful  river  in   all  that  wild  interior.     Its 


*  This  superb  plant  is  found  from  July  to  October  along  the  shores  of  the  lakes,  rivers,  and  riviilets, 
and  in  swaraps.  all  over  noilhern  New  York.  It  is  pei-ennial,  and  is  borne  upon  an  erect  stem,  from  two 
to  three  feet  in  height.  The  leaves  are  long  and  slender,  with  a  long,  tapering  base.  The  tlowera  are 
large  and  verj^  showy.  Corolla  bright  scarlet ;  the  tube  slender ;  segments  of  the  lower  Hp  oblong- 
lanceolate  ;  filaineuts  red ;  anthers  blue  ;  stigma  tliree-lobed,  and  at  length  proU-uded.  It  gi-ows  readily 
when  transplanted,  even  in  dry  soil,  and  is  frequently  seen  in  our  gardens.  A  picture  of  this  plant 
forms  a  portion  of  the  design  around  the  initial  letter  at  the  head  of  this  chapter. 


10 


THE   HUDSON. 


shores  are  generally  Iotv,  and  extend  back  some  distance  in  wet  prairies, 
upon  wliicli  grow  the  soft  maple,  the  aspen,  alder,  linden,  and  other 
deciduous  trees,  interspersed  with  the  hemlock  and  pine.  These  fringe 
its  borders,  and  standing  in  clumps  upon  the  prairies,  in  the  midst  of  rank 
grass,  give  them  the  appearance  of  beautiful  deer  parks ;  and  they  are 
really  so,  for  there  herds  of  deer  do  pasture.  "We  saw  their  fresh  tracks 
all  along  the  shores,  but  they  arc  now  so  continually  hunted,  that  they 
keep  away  from  the  waters  whenever  a  strange  sound  falls  upon  their 
cars.  In  the  deep  wilderness  through  which  this  dark  and  rapid  river 
flows,  and  around  the  neighbouring  lakes,  the  stately  moose  yet  lingers  ; 


0^i^  V  \ '  I  fi.,Mm,ji  iy:%, 


TENANTS  OF  THE  UPPER  HUDSON  FORESTS. 


and  upon  St.  llegis  Lake,  north  of  the  Saranao  group,  two  or  three 
families  of  the  beaver — the  most  rare  of  all  the  tenants  of  these  forests — 
might  then  be  found.  The  otter  is  somewhat  abundant,  but  the  panther 
has  become  almost  extinct ;  the  wolf  is  seldom  seen,  except  in  winter ; 
and  the  black  bear,  quite  abundant  in  the  mountain  range's,  was  shy  and 
invisible  to  the  summer  tourist. 

The  chief  source  of  the  Eaquette  is  in  Raquette  Lake,  toward  the 
western  part  of  Hamilton  County.  Around  it  the  Indians,  in  the  ancient 
days,  gathered  on  snow-shoes,  in  winter,  to  hunt  the  moose,  then  found 


THE    HUDSON.  11 


tbere  in  large  droves ;  and  from  that  cirOumstance  they  named  it 
"  Raquet,"  the  equivalent  in  Prench  for  snow-shoe  in  English.* 

Seven  miles  from  our  entrance  upon  the  Eaquette,  we  came  to  the 
"  Falls,"  where  the  stream  rushes  in  cascades  over  a  rocky  hed  for  a  mile. 
At  the  foot  of  the  rapids  we  diucd,  and  then  ^yalked  a  mile  over  a  lofty, 
thickly-wooded  hill,  to  their  head,  where  we  re-emharked.  Here  our 
guides  first  carried  their  hoats,  and  it  was  surprising  to  see  with  what 
apparent  ease  our  Indian  took  the  heaviest,  weighing  at  least  160  lbs., 
and  with  a- dog-trot  bore  it  the  whole  distance,  stopping  only  once.  The 
boat  rests  upon  a  yoke,  similar  to  those  which  water-carriers  use  in  some 
countries,  fitted  to  the  neck  and  shoulders,  and  it  is  thus  borne  with  the 
ease  of  the  coracle. 

At  the  head  of  the  rapids  we  met  acquaintances — two  clergymen  in 
hunting  costume — and  after  exchanging  salutations,  we  voyaged  on  six 
miles,  to  the  foot  of  Long  Lake,  through  which  the  Eaquette  flows,  like 
the  Ehone  through  Lake  Geneva.  This  was  called  by  the  Indians  Lica- 
2)ah-cliow,  or  Linden  Sea,  because  the  forests  upon  its  shores  abounded 
with  the  bass-wood  or  American  linden.  As  we  entered  that  beautiful 
sheet  of  water,  a  scene  of  indescribable  beauty  opened  upon  the  vision. 
The  sun  was  yet  a  little  above  the  western  hills,  whose  long  shadows 
lay  across  the  wooded  intervals.  Before  us  was  the  lake,  calm  and  trans- 
lucent as  a  mirror,  its  entire  length  of  thirteen  miles  in  view,  except 
where  broken  by  islands,  the  more  distant  appearing  shadowy  in  the 
purple  light.  The  lofty  mountain  ranges  on  both  sides  stretched  away 
into  the  blue  distance,  and  the  slopes  of  one,  and  the  peak  of  another, 
were  smoking  like  volcanoes,  the  timber  being  on  fire.  I^Tear  us  the 
groves  upon  the  headlands,  solitary  trees,  rich  shrubbery,  graceful  rushes, 
the  clustering  moose-head  and  water-lily,  and  the  gorgeous  cloud-pictures, 
were  perfectly  reflected,  and  produced  a  scene  such  as  the  mortal  eye 
seldom  beholds.  The  sun  went  down,  the  vision  faded  ;  and,  sweeping 
around  a  long,  marshy  point,  we  drew  our  boats  upon  a  pebbly  shore  at 


*  This  is  the  account  of  the  origin  of  its  name,  given  by  tlie  French  Jesuits  who  fh-st  explored  that 
region.  Others  say  tliat  its  Indian  name,  Ni-ka-na-u-a-te,  means  a  racket,  or  noise — nois}*  river,  and 
spell  it  Itac/ict.  But  it  is  no  more  noisy  than  its  near  neighbour,  the  Grass  Eiver  which  flows  into  the 
St.  Lawrence  from  the  bosom  of  the  same  wilderness. 


12 


THE    HUDSON. 


twilight,  at  the  foot  of  a  piue-bluff,  and  proceeded  to  erect  a  camp  for  the 
night.  No  human  habitation  was  near,  excepting  the  hark  cabin  of 
Eowen,  the  "  Hermit  of  Long  Lake,"  whose  history  wc  have  not  space  to 
record. 

Our  camp  \\as  soon  constructed.  Tlie  guides  selected  a  pleasant  spot 
near  the  foot  of  a  lofty  pine,  placed  two  crotched  sticks  perpendicularly 
in  the  ground,  about  eight  feet  apart,  laid  a  stout  pole  horizontally  across 


t-AMF   lIJiLJi.NA. 


them,  placed  othei-s  against  it  in  position  like  the  rafters  of  lialf  a  roof, 
one  end  upon  the  ground,  and  covered  the  whole  and  both  sides  with  the 
boughs  of  the  hemlock  and  pine,  leaving  the  front  open.  The  ground 
was  then  strewn  with  the  delicate  sprays  of  tlie  hemlock  and  balsam, 
making  a  sweet  and  jjleasant  bed.  A  few  feet  from  the  front  they  built 
a  huge  fire,  and  prepared  supper,  which  consisted  of  broiled  partridges 


^ 


THE    HUDSON. 


13 


(that  were  shot  on  the  shores  of  the  Raquette  by  one  of  the  guides), 
bread  and  butter,  tea  and  maple  sugar.  We  supped  by  the  light  of  a 
birch-bark  torch,  fastened  to  a  tall  stick.  At  the  close  of  a  moonlight 
evening,  our  fire  burning  brightly,  we  retired  for  the  night,  wrapped  in 
blanket  shawls,  our  satchels  and  their  contents  serving  for  pillows,  our 
heads  at  the  back  part  of  the  "camp,"  and  our  feet  to  the  lire.  The 
guides  lying  near,  kept  the  wood  blazing  throughout  the  night.  "We 
named  the  place  Cump  JIdena,  in  compliment  to  the  lady  of  our  party. 

The  morning  dawned  gloriously,  and  at  an  early  hour  we  proceeded  up 
the  Inca-pah-clwir,  in  the  face  of  a  stiff  breeze,  ten  miles  to  the  mouth  of 
a  clear  stream,  that  came  down  from  one  of  the  burning  mountains  which 
we  saw  the  evening  before.  A  walk  of  half  a  mile  brought  us  to  quite 
an  extensive  clearing,  and  Houghton's  house  of  entertainment.  There 
we  dismissed  our  Saranac  guides,  and  despatched  on  horseback  the  one 
who  had  joined  us  on  the  Spectacle 
Ponds  to  the  home  of  Mitchell  Sabattis, 
a  St.  Francis  Indian,  eighteen  miles 
distant,  to  procure  his  services  for 
our  tour  to  the  head  waters  of  the 
Hudson.  Sabattis  was  by  far  the 
best  man  iu  all  that  region  to  lead 
the  traveller  to  the  Hudsou  waters, 
and  the  Adirondack  Mountains,  for 
he  had  lived  iu  that  neighbourhood 
from  his  youth,  and  was  then  between 
thirty  and  forty  years  of  age.  He 
was  a  grandson  of  Sabattis  mentioned 
in  history,  who,  with  Natauis,  be- 
friended Colonel  Benedict  Arnold,  ..au.vixis. 
while  on  his  march  through  tlie  wilderness  from  the  Kennebeck  to  the 
Chaudiere,  in  the  autumn  of  1775,  to  attack  Quebec.  Much  to  our 
delight  and  relief,  Sabattis  returned  with  our  messenger,  for  the  demand 
for  good  guides  was  so  great,  that  we  were  fearful  he  might  be  absent  on 
duty  with  others. 

Thick  clouds  came  rolling  over   the   mountains  from   the   south   at 


14 


THE   HUDSON. 


evening,  presaging  a  storm,  aud  the  night  fell  intensely  dark.  The 
burning  hill  above  us  presented  a  magnificent  appearance  in  the  gloom. 
The  fire  was  in  broken  points  over  a  surface  of  half  a  mile,  near  the 
summit,  and  the  appearance  was  like  a  city  upon  the  lofty  slope, 
brilliantly  illuminated.  It  was  sad  to  see  the  fire  sweeping  away  whole 
acres  of  fine  timber.  But  such  scenes  are  frequent  in  that  region,  and 
every  bald  and  blackened  hill-top  in  the  ranges  is  the  record  of  a 
conflagratiou. 

We  were  detained  at  Houghton's  the  following  day  by  a  heavy  rain. 
On  the  morning  after,  the  clouds  drifted  away  early,  and  with  our  new 
and  excellent  guides,  Mitchell  Sabattis  and  William  Preston,  we  went 

down  the  lake  eight  miles, 
and  landed  at  a  "  carry  "—as 
the  portages  are  called — on 
its  eastern  shore,  within  half 
a  mile  of  Hendriek  Spring 
(so  named  in  honour  of  Hen- 
driek Hudson),  the  most  I'e- 
moto  source  of  the  extreme 
western  branch  of  our  noble 
river.  To  reach  water  navig- 
able with  our  boats,  we  were 
compelled  to  walk  through 
forest  and  swamp  about  two 
miles.  That  was  our  first 
really  fatiguing  journey  on 
foot,  for  to  facilitate  the  pas- 
sage, we  each  carried  as  much  luggage  as  possible. 

We  found  Hendriek  Spring  in  the  edge  of  a  swamp — cold,  shallow, 
about  five  feet  in  diameter,  shaded  by  trees,  shrubbery,  and  vines,  and 
fringed  with  the  delicate  brake  and  fern.  Its  waters,  rising  within  half 
a  mile  of  Long  Lake,  and  upon  the  same  summit  level,  flow  southward  to 
the  Atlantic  more  than  three  hundred  miles ;  while  those  of  the  latter 
flow  to  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  reach  the  same  Atlantic  a  thousand  miles 
away  to  the  far  north-cast.     A  few  years  ago.  Professor  G.  W.  Benedict 


HENDEICK  BPHIXG. 


THE   HUDSON. 


15 


(who  was  connected  with  the  State  Geological  Survey)  attempted  to  unite 
these  waters  by  a  canal,  for  lumbering  purposes,  but  the  enterprise  was 
abandoned.  "We  followed  the  ditch  that  he  had  cut  through  the  swamp 
nearly  half  a  mile,  among  tall  raspberry  bushes,  laden  with  delicious 
fruit,  and  for  another  half  mile  we  made  our  way  oyer  the  most  difficult 
ground  imaginable.  Dead  trees  were  lying  in  every  direction,  some 
charred,  others  prone  with  black  ragged  roots,  and  all  entangled  in 
shrubbery  and  vines.     Through  this  labyrinth  our  guides  carried  their 


SWAMP  TRAVEL. 


boats,  and  we  quite  heavy  packs,  but  all  were  compelled  to  rest  every 
few  minutes,  for  the  sun  was  shining  hotly  upon  us.  We  were  nearly 
an  hour  travelling  that  half  mile.  Thorouglily  wearied,  we  entered  one 
of  the  boats  at  the  first  navigable  point  on  Spring  Brook,  that  flows  from 
the  Hendiick  source,  and  rowed  leisurely  down  to  Fountaia  Lake,  while 


16 


THE   HUDSON. 


our   guides  returned  for   tlic  remainder  of  the  luggage  and  provisions. 
The  passage  of  that  portage  consumed  four  hours. 

Fountain  Lake  is  the  first  collection  of  the  waters  of  the  ■west  branch 
of  the  Hudson.  It  is  about  two  miles  in  circumference,  with  highly 
picturesque  shores.  It  empties  into  Catlin  Lake  through  a  shallow, 
stony  outlet.  From  both  of  these  we  had  fine  views  of  the  near  Santanoni 
Mountains,  and  the  more  distant  ranges  of  Mount  Seward,  on  the  cast. 
At  the  foot  of  Fountain  Lake  is  another  "  carry  "  of  a  mile.  A  few  rods 
down  its  outlet,  where  we  crossed,  we  found  the  remains  of  a  darn  and 


CATLIX  LAKE. 


sluice,  erected  by  Professor  Benedict,  to  raise  the  waters  so  as  to  flow 
through  his  canal  into  Long  Lake,  and  for  another  purpose,  which  will 
be  explained  presently.  The  sun  went  down  while  we  were  crossing  this 
portage,  and  finding  a  good  place  for  a  camp  on  the  margin  of  a  cold 
mountain  stream  in  the  deep  forest,  we  concluded  to  remain  there  during 
the  night.  Our  guides  soon  constructed  a  shelter  with  an  inverted  boat, 
poles,  and  boughs,  and  we  all  slept  soundly,  after  a  day  of  excessive  toil. 
In  the  morning  we  embarked  upon  the  beautiful  Catlin  Lake,  and 
rowed   to   its   outlet — three   miles.      After   walking    a   few   rods   over 


THE   HUDSON. 


17 


boulders,  while  our  guides  dragged  the  boats  through  a  narrow  channel 
between  them,  we  re-embarked  upon  Narrow  Lake,  and  passed  through 
it  and  Lilypad  Pond — a  mile  and  a  half — to  another  "carry"  of  thi-ee- 
fourths  of  a  mile,  which  brought  us  to  the  junction  of  tlie  Hudson  and 
Fishing  Brook.  This  was  a  dreary  region,  and  yet  highly  picturesque. 
It  was  now  about  noon.  Sabattis  informed  us  that,  a  little  way  up  the 
Fishing  Brook,  were  a  clearing  and  a  saw-mill — the  first  on  the  Hudson. 


FIBST  CLEABIXG   ON  THE  HUDSON. 


We  walked  about  half  a  mile  through  the  woods  to  see  them.  Emerging 
from  the  forest,  we  came  to  a  field  filled  with  boulders  and  blackened 
stumps,  and,  from  the  summit  of  a  hill,  we  overlooked  an  extensive 
rolling  valley,  heavily  timbered,  stretching  westward  to  the  "Windfall 
Jlountains,  and  at  our  feet  were  the  Clearing  and  the  Saw-mill.  The 
latter  stood  at  the  head  of  a  deep  rocky  gorge,  down  which  gi-eat  logs  are 
sent  at  high  water.  The  clearing  was  too  recent  to  allow  much  fruit  of 
tillage,  but  preparations  were  made  for  farming,  in  the  erection  of  a  good 
frame  dwelling  and  outhouses.  The  head  waters  of  this  considerable 
tributary  of  the  Upper  Hudson  is  Pickwaket  Pond,  four  miles  above  the 
mill. 


18 


THE   HUDSON. 


A  short  distance  below  the  confluence  of  the  Hudson  and  Fishing 
Brook,  we  entered  Rich's  Luke,  an  irregular  sheet  of  water,  about  two 
miles  and  a  half  in  length,  with  surroundings  more  picturesque,  in  some 


UN    aut  HIDSON 


respects,  than  any  we  had  visited.  From  its  southern  shore  Goodenow 
Mountain  rises  to  an  altitude  of  about  fifteen  hundred  feet,  crowned  by  a 
rocky  knob.  Near  the  foot  of  the  lake  is  a  wooded  peninsula,  whose  low 
isthmus,  being  covered  at  high  water,  leaven  it  an  island.  It  is  called 
Elephant  Island,  because  of  the  singular  resemblance  of  some  of  the  lime- 


THE    HUDSON. 


19 


stone  formation  that  composes  its  bold  shore  to  portions  of  that  animal. 
The  whole  rock  is  perforated  into  singularly-formed  caves.     This,  and 


ELEPHiNI  ISLAM;. 


another  similar  shore  a  few  miles  below,  were  the  oul}"  deposits  of  lime- 
stone that  we  saw  in  all  that  region. 

At  the  outlet  of  Eieh's  Lake  wore   the  ruins  of  a  dam  and  lumber 


LUMBER  SAM  AM)  SLUICE 


sluice,  similar   in   construction   and  intended  use  to  that  of  Professor 
Benedict  at  Fountain  Lake.     The  object  of  such  structures,  which  ocem- 


fi' 


^^0E<5^ 


20 


THE   HUDSON. 


on  the  Upper  Hudsou,  is  to  gatlier  the  logs  that  float  from  above,  and 
then,  by  letting  out  the  accumnlated  waters  by  the  sluice,  give  a  flood  to 
the  shallow,  rocky  outlets,  sufiicient  to  carry  them  all  into  the  next  lake 
below,  where  the  process  is  repeated.  These  logs  of  pine,  hemlock, 
cedar,  and  spruce,  are  cut  upon  the  borders  of  the  streams,  marked  on 
the  ends  by  a  single  blow  with  a  hammer,  on  the  face  of  which  is  the 
monogram  of  the  owner,  and  then  cast  into  the  waters  to  be  gathered  and 
claimed  perhaps  at  the  great  boom  near  Glen's  Falls,  a  hundred  miles 
below.  We  shall  again  refer  to  this  process  of  collecting  lumber  from 
the  mountains. 


CHAPTER    II. 


?N  tne  old  settlement  of  Pendleton,  in  the  town  of 
Newcomb,  Essex  County,  we  spent  our  second 
Sabbath.      That   settlement    is    between    the 
head  of  Rich's  Lake  and  the  foot  of  Harris's 
Lake,  a  distance  of  five  or  six  miles  along  their 
southern   shores.     It  derives  its  name  from 
Judge  ^Nathaniel  Pendleton,  who,  about  fifty 
years  ago,  made  a  clearing  there,  and  built  a 
^  ^'      dam,  and    grist,   and  saw-mill    at   the  foot  of  Rich's 
Lake,  where  the  lumber  dam  and  sluice,  before  men- 
tioned, were   afterwards   made.      Here    was  the   home  of 
8abattis,  our  Indian  guide,  who  owned   two  hundred  and 
forty  acres  of  land,  with  good  improvements.     His  wife  was 
a   fair  German  woman,  mother   of   several  children,  unmistakably 

marked  with  Indian  blood. 

It  was  Eiiday  night  when  we  arri^•ed  at  the  thrifty  Pendleton  settle- 
ment, and  we  resolved  to  spend  the  Sabbath  there.  "We  found  excellent 
accommodation  at  the  farmhouse  of  Daniel  Bissell,  and,  giving  Preston  a 
furlough  for  two  days  to  visit  his  lately-married  wife  at  his  home,  nine 
miles  distant,  we  all  went  in  a  single  boat  the  next  day,  manned  by 
Sabattis  alone,  to  visit  Harris's  Lake,  and  the  confluence  of  its  outlet 
with  the  Adirondack  branch  of  the  Hudson,  thi'ee  miles  below  Bissell's. 
That  lake  is  a  beautiful  sheet  of  water,  and  along  the  dark,  sluggish 
river,  above  the  rapids  at  its  head,  we  saw  the  cardinal  flower  upon  the 
banks,  and  the  rich  moose-head  ••"  in  the  water,  in  great  abundance. 


*  Tlii:*.  in  lliu  buuks,  is  called  Pic-kercl  Weed  {Pontcdcriti  corttnta  of  Liunaus),  but  llie  guides  cull  it 
moose-head.  The  stem  is  stout  and  cjiindrical,  and  bears  a  spear-shaped  leaf,  somewhat  cordate  at  the 
base.  The  flowers,  which  appear  in  July  and  Angnst,  are  composed  of  dense  spikes,  of  a  rich  blue 
colour.  A  picture  of  the  moose-head  is  seen  in  the  water  beneath  the  initial  letter  at  the  head  of 
Chapter  I. 


'A'.>. 


THE    HUDSON. 


The  rapids  at  the  bead  of  Hanis's  Lake  arc  very  picturesque.  Look- 
ing up  from  them,  Goodenow  Mountain  is  seen  in  the  distance,  and  still 
more  remote  are  glimpses  of  the  Windfall  range.  We  passed  the  rapids 
upon  boulders,  and  then  voyaged  down  to  the  coniluencc  of  the  two 
streams  just  mentioned.  From  a  rough  rocky  bluff  a  mile  below  that 
point,  we  obtained  a  distant  view  of  three  of  the  higlier  peaks  of  the 
Adirondacks — Tahawus  or  Mount  Marcy,  Mount  Colden,  and  Mount 
M'Intyre.  We  returned  at  evening  beneath  a  canopy  of  magnificent 
clouds  ;  aud  that  night  was  made  strangely  luminous  by  one  of  the  most 


IIAI'ID,  AT  THE  HEAD  OF  HARRIS'S  LAKE. 


splendid  displays  of  the  Aurora  Borealis  ever  seen  upon  the  continent. 
It  -was  observed  as  far  south  as  Chai-lcstou,  in  South  Carolina. 

Sabattis  is  an  active  Methodist,  and  at  his  request  (their  minister  not 
having  arrived)  Mr.  Buckingham  read  the  beautiful  liturgy  of  the  Church 
of  England  on  Sunday  morning  to  a  congregation  of  thirty  or  forty  people, 
in  the  school-house  on  our  guide's  farm.  In  the  afternoon  we  attended 
a  prayer-meeting  at  the  same  place  ;  and  early  the  next  morning,  while 
a  storm  of  wind  and  heavy  mist  was  sweeping  over  the  countr}-,  started 
•with  our  two  guides,  in  a  lumber  waggon,  for  the  Adirondack  Mountains. 
We  now  left  our  boats,  in  which  and  on  foot  we  had  travelled,  from  the 


THE    HUDSON. 


23 


lower  Saranac  to  Harris's  Lake,  more  than  seventy  miles.  It  was  a 
tedious  journey  of  twenty-six  miles,  most  of  the  way  over  a  "  corduroy  " 
road — a  causeway  of  logs.  On  the  way  wc  passed  the  confluence  of  Lake 
Delia  with  the  Adirondack  branch  of  the  Hudson,  reached  M'Intyre's  Inn 
(Tahawus  House,  at  the  foot  of  Sandford  Lake)  toward  noon,  and  at  two 
o'clock  were  at  the  little  deserted  village  at  the  Adirondack  Iron  Works, 
between  Sandford  and  Henderson  Lakes.  "We  passed  near  the  margin  of 
the  former  a  large  portion  of  the  way.  It  is  a  beautiful  body  of  water, 
nine  miles  long,  with-  several  little  islands.     From  the  road  along  its 


SANDFORD  LAKE. 


shores  we  had  a  line  view  of  the  three  great  mountain  peaks  just 
mentioned,  and  of  the  "Wall-face  Mountain  at  the  Indian  Pass.  At  the 
house  of  Mr.  Hunter,  the  only  inhabitant  of  the  deserted  village,  we 
dined,  and  then  prepared  to  ascend  the  Great  Tahawis,  or  8ky-pierccr. 

The  little  deserted  village  of  Adirondack,  or  M'Intyre,  nestled  in  a 
rocky  valley  upon  the  Upper  Hudson,  at  the  foot  of  the  principal  moun- 
tain barrier  which  rises  between  its  sources  and  those  of  the  Au  Sable, 
and  in  the  bosom  of  an  almost  unbroken  forest,  appeared  cheerful  to  us 
weary  wanderers,  although  smoke  was  to  be  .seen  from  only  a  solitary 


24 


THE   HUDSON. 


chimney.  The  hamlet — consisting  of  sixteen  dwelling-houses,  furnaces, 
and  other  edifices,  and  a  huilding  with  a  cupola,  used  for  a  school  and 
puhlic  worship — was  tho  offspring  of  enterprise  and  capital,  which  many 
years  before  had  combined  to  develop  the  mineral  wealth  of  that  region. 
That  wealth  was  still  there,  and  almost  untouched — for  enterprise  and 
capital,  compelled  to  contend  with  geographical  and  topographical 
impediments,  have  abandoned  their  unprofitable  application  of  labour, 
and  left  the  rich  iron  ores,  apparently  exhaustless  in  quantity,  to  bo 
quarried  and  transformed  in  the  not  far-off  future. 

The  ores  of  that  vicinity  had  never  been  revealed  to  the  eye  of  civilised 
man  until  the  year  1826,  when  David  Henderson,  a  young  Scotchman,  of 
J.crsey  City,  opposite  Ifew  York,  while  standing  near  the  iron-works  of 
his  father-in-law,  Archibald  M'Intyre,  at  North  Elba,  in  Essex  County, 
was  approached  by  a  St.  Francis  Indian,  known  in  all  that  region  as  a 
brave  and  skilful  hunter — honest,  intelligent,  and,  like  all  his  race, 
taciturn.  The  Indian  took  from  beneath  his  blanket  a  piece  of  ii"on  ore, 
and  handed  it  to  Henderson,  saying,  "You  want  to  see  'um  ore?  Me 
fine  plenty — all  same."  When  asked  where  it  came  from,  he  pointed 
toward  the  south-west,  and  said,  "Me  hunt  beaver  all 'lone,  and  fine 
'um  where  water  run  over  iron-dam."  An  exploring  party  was 
immediately  formed,  and  followed  the  Indian  into  the  deep  forest.  They 
slept  that  night  at  the  base  of  the  towering  cliff  of  the  Indian  Pass. 
The  next  day  they  reached  tho  liead  of  a  beautiful  lake,  which  they 
named  "Henderson,"  and  followed  its  outlet  to  the  site  of  Adirondack 
village.  There,  in  a  deep-shaded  valley,  they  beheld  with  wonder  the 
"iron  dam,"  or  dyke  of  iron  ore,  stretched  across  a  stream,  which  was 
afterward  found  to  be  one  of  the  main  branches  of  the  Upper  Hudson. 
They  at  once  explored  tho  vicinity,  and  discovered  that  this  dyke  was 
connected  with  vast  deposits  of  ore,  which  formed  rooky  ledges  on  the 
sides  of  the  narrow  valley,  and  presented  beds  of  metal  adequate,  appa- 
rently, to  the  supply  of  tho  world's  demand  for  centuries.  It  is  believed 
that  the  revealer  of  this  wealth  was  Peter  Sabattis,  the  father  of  oiir 
Indian  guide. 

The  explorers  perceived  that  all  around  that  vast  deposit  of  wealth  in 
the  earth  was  an  abundant  supply  of  hard  wood,  and  other  necessary 


THE    HUDSON. 


25 


ingredients  for  the  mamifaeture  of  iron ;  and,  notwithstanding  it  was 
thirty  miles  from  any  highway  on  land  or  water,  with  an  uninterrupted 
sweep  of  forest  between,  and  more  than  a  hundred  miles  from  any  market, 
the  entire  mineral  region — comprising  more  than  a  whole  township — was 
purchased,  and  preparations  were  soon  made  to  develop  its  resources.  A 
partnership  was  formed  between  Archibald  !M'Intyre,  Archibald  Eobert- 


'JHK    imtN    1>AM. 


son,  and  David  Henlcrson,  all  related  by  marriage  ;  and  with  slight  aid 
from  the  State,  they  constructed  a  road  through  the  wilderness,  from  the 
Scarron  [Sehroon]  Valley,  near  Lake  Champlain,  to  the  foot  of  Sandford 
Lake,  halfway  between  the  head  of  which  and  the  beautiful  Henderson 
Lake  was  the  "  iron  dam."  There  a  settlement  was  commenced  in  1834. 
A  timber  dam  was  constructed  upon  the  iron  one,  to  increase  the  fall  of 
water,  and  an  experimental  furnace  was  built.     Rare  and  most  valuable 

E 


26 


THE   HUDSON. 


iron  was  produced,  equal  to  any  from  the  best  Swedish  furnaces ;  and  it 
was  afterward  found  to  bo  capable  of  being  wrought  into  steel  equal  to 
the  best  imported  from  England. 

The  proprietors  prociircd  an  act  of  incorporation,  under  the  title  of  tlic 
"  Adirondack  Iron  and  Steel  Company,"  with  a  capital,  at  first,  of 
$1,000,000  (£200,000),  afterward  increased  to  $3,000,000  (£600,000), 
and  constructed  another  furnace,  n  forge,  stamping-mill,  saw  and  grist 
mill,  machine-shops,  powder-house,  dwellings,  boarding-house,  school- 
house,  barns,  sheds,  and  kilns  for  the  manufacture  of  charcoal.  At  the 
foot  of  Sandford  Lake,  eleven  miles  south  from  Adirondack  village,  they 
also  commenced  a  settlement,  and  named  it  Tahawus,  where  they  erected 


\riK    M  \tK  MLL\f  E 


a  (lam  seventeen  hundred  feet  in  length,  a  saw-mill,  warehouses,  dwell- 
ings for  workmen,  &c.  And  in  18.54  they  completed  a  blast  furnace  near 
the  upper  village,  at  the  head  of  Sandford  Lake,  at  an  expense  of 
$43,000  (£8,600),  capable  of  producing  fourteen  tons  of  iron  a-day. 
They  also  built  six  heavy  boats  upon  Sandford  Lake,  for  the  transportation 
of  freight,  and  roads  at  an  expense  of  $10,000  (£2,000).  Altogether 
the  proprietors  spent  nearly  half  a  million  of  dollars,  or  £100,000. 

Meanwhile  the  project  of  a  railway  from  Saratoga  to  Sackett's  Harbour, 
on  Lake'^Ontario,  to  bisect  the  groat  wilderness,  was  conceived.  A 
company  was  formed,  and  forty  miles  of  the  road  were  put  under  contract, 
and  actually  gi-aded.     It  would  pass  within  a  few  miles  of  the  Adirondack 


THE    HUDSON.  27 


Works,  and  it  was  estimated  that,  with-  a  connecting  brancli  road,  the 
iron  might  be  conveyed  to  Albany  for  two  dollars  a  ton,  and  compete 
profitably  -witli  other  ii-on  in  the  market.  A  plank  road  was  also 
projected  from  Adii-ondaek  %Tllage  to  Preston  Ponds,  and  down  the  Cold 
River  to  the  llariuette,  at  the  foot  of  Long  Lake. 

But  the  labour  on  the  road  was  suspended,  the  iron  iuterest  of  the 
United  States  became  depressed,  the  Adirondack  Works  were  rendered 
not  only  unprofitable,  but  the  source  of  heavy  losses  to  the  owners,  and 
for  five  years  their  fires  had  been  extinguished.  In  August,  1856,  heavy 
rains  in  the  mountains  sent  roaring  floods  down  the  ravines,  and  the 
Hudson,  only  a  brook  when  we  were  there,  was  swelled  to  a  mighty 
river.  An  upper  dam  at  Adirondack  gave  way,  and  a  new  channel  for 
the  stream  was  cut,  and  the  great  dam  at  Tahawus,  with  the  saw-miU, 
was  demolished  by  the  rushing  waters.  All  was  left  a  desolation.  Over 
scores  of  acres  at  the  head  and  foot  of  8andford  Lake  (overflowed  when 
the  dam  was  constructed)  we  saw  white  skeletons  of  trees  which  had  been 
killed  by  the  flood,  standing  tliickly,  and  heightening  the  dreary  aspect 
of  the  scone.  The  workmen  had  uU  departed  from  Adirondack,  and  only 
liobert  Hunter  and  his  family,  who  hud  charge  of  tlie  property,  remained. 
The  original  proprietors  were  all  dead,  and  the  property,  intriusically 
valuable  but  immediately  unproductive,  was  in  the  possession  of  their 
respective  families.  But  the  projected  railway  will  yet  be  constructed, 
because  it  is  needful  for  the  development  and  use  of  that  immense  mineral 
and  timber  region,  and  again  that  forest  village  will  be  vivified,  and  the 
echoes  of  the  deep  breathings  of  its  furnaces  will  be  heard  in  the  neigh- 
bouring mountains. 

At  Mr.  Hunter's  we  prepared  for  the  rougher  travel  on  foot  through 
the  mountain  forests  to  Tahawus,  ten  miles  distant.  Here  we  may 
properly  instruct  the  expectant  tourist  iu  this  region  in  regard  to  such 
preparation.  Eveiy  arrangement  should  be  as  simple  as  possible.  A 
man  needs  only  a  stout  flannel  hunting  shii-t,  coarse  and  trustworthy 
trousers,  woollen  stockings,  large  heavy  boots  well  saturated  with  a  com- 
position of  beeswax  and  tallow,  a  soft  felt  hat  or  a  cap,  and  strong  buck- 
skin gloves.  A  woman  needs  a  stout  flannel  dress,  over  shortened 
crinoline,  of  short  dimensions,  with  loops  and  buttons  to  adjust  its  length  ; 


a  liood  aud  cape  of  the  same  materials,  made  so  as  to  envelop  the  head 
and  bust,  and  leave  the  arms  free,  woollen  stockings,  stout  calfskin  boots 
that  cover  the  legs  to  the  knee,  well  saturated  with  beeswax  and  tallow, 
and  an  india-rubber  satchel  for  necessary  toilet  materials.  Provisions, 
also,  should  be  simple.     The  hunters  live  chiefly  on  bread  or  craclcers, 


UEPAHTLKJi  i-oa  TAUAWL;: 


and  maple  sugar.  The  usual  preparation  is  a  sufficient  stock  of  Uoston 
crackers,  pilot-bread,  or  common  loaf-bread,  butter,  tea  or  coffee,  pepper 
aud  salt,  an  ample  quantity  of  maple  sugar,  •■'  and  some  salted  pork,  to  use 
in  frying  or  broiling  fish,  birds,  aud  game.  The  utensils  for  cooking  are 
a  short-handled  frying-pau,  a  broad  aud  shallow  tin  pan,  tin  tea  or  cofl'ec- 


*  The  liuRl,  or  Siigm-  Maple  (Acer  siicchin-iniim),  abounds  in  all  parts  of  the  State  of  New  Voi-k.  It 
is  a  beautiful  tree,  often  found  from  flftj'  to  eighty  feet  in  height,  and  the  trunk  from  two  to  three  feet 
in  diameter.  From  the  sap,  which  flows  abundantly  in  the  spring,  delicious  sjTup  and  excellent  sugar 
are  made.  In  the  Upper  Hndson  region,  the  sap  is  procured  by  makiug  a  small  incision  with  an  axe,  or 
a  hole  with  an  augur,  into  the  body  of  tlie  tree,  into  which  a  small  tube  or  gutter  is  fastened.  From 
thence  the  sap  Hows,  and  is  caught  in  rough  troughs,  dug  ont  of  small  logs.  [See  the  initial  letter  at  the 
head  of  Chapter  III.]  It  is  collected  into  tubs,  aud  boiled  in  caldron  kettles.  The  syrup  remains  in 
buckets  from  twelve  to  twenty-four  hours,  and  settles  before  straining.  To  make  sugar  it  is  boiled 
carefully  over  a  slow  fii-e.  To  cleanse  it,  the  white  of  one  egg,  and  one  gill  of  milk,  are  used  for  every 
aolbs.  or  40 lbs.  of  sugar..  Some  settlers  maunfacturc  a  considerable  quantity  of  sugar  every  year,  as 
much  as  from  300  lbs.  to  tiOOlbs. 


THE    HUDSON. 


^ji^-.^: 


ISJ?" 


.'^' 


2y 


l)ot,  tin  plates  aud  cups,  kuives,  forks,  aud  spoons.  These,  with  shawls 
or  overcoats,  and  india-rubber  capes  to  keep  off  the  rain,  the  guides  will 
carr}-,  with  guu,  axe,  and  fishing-tackle.  Sjjortsmen  who  expect  to  camp 
out  some  time,  should  take  with  them  a  light  tent.  The  guides  will  fish, 
hunt,  work,  build  "camps,"  aud  do  all  other  necessary  service,  for  a 
moderate  compensation  and  theii-  food.  It  is  proper  here  to  remark  that 
the  tourist  should  never  enter  this  wilderness  earlier  than  the  middle  of 
August.  Then  the  flies  and  mosquitoes,  the  intolerable  pests  of  the 
forests,  are  rapidly  disappearing,  aud  fine  weather  may  be  expected.  The 
sportsman  must  go  in  June  or  July  for  trout,  aud  in  October  for  deer. 

Well  prepared  with  all  necessaries  excepting  flannel  over-shirts,  we  set 
out  from  Adu'ondack  on  the  afternoon  of  the  oOth  of  August,  our  guides 


FIEST  BKICGE  OVEK  THE  HUDSOX. 


with  their  packs  leading  the  way.  The  morning  had  been  misty,  but  the 
atmosphere  was  then  clear  and  cool.  "We  crossed  the  Hudson  three-fourths 
of  a  mile  below  Henderson  Lake,  upon  a  rude  bridge,  made  our  way 
through  a  clearing  tangled  with  tall  raspberry  shrubs  full  of  fruit,  for 
nearly  hcdf  a  mile,  aud  then  entered  the  deep  and  solemn  forest,  composed 
of  bircli,  maple,  cedar,  hemlock,  spruce,  aud  tall  pine  trees.  Our  way 
was  over  a  level  for  thi-ec-fourths  of  a  mile,  to  the  outlet  of  Calamity 
I'ond.    We  crossed  it  at  a  beautiful  cascade,  aud  then  commenced  ascend- 


30 


THE   HUDSON. 


ing  by  a  sinuous  mouuttiiii  path,  across  wbicli  many  a  huge  tree  had  been 
cast  by  the  •wind.  It  was  a  weary  journey  of  almost  four  miles  (notwith- 
standing it  lay  along  the  track  of  a  lane  cut  through  the  forest  a  few 
years  ago  for  a  special  purpose,  of  which  we  shall  presently  speak),  for  in 
many  places  the  soil  was  hidden  by  boulders  covered  with"|  thick  moss, 
over  which  we  were  compelled  to  climb.  Towards  sunset  we  reached  a 
ideasaut  little  lake,  embosomed  in  the  dense  forest,  its  low  wet  margin 
fringed  with  brilliant  yellow  flowers,  beautifid  iu  form  but  witliout 
perfume.     At  the  head  of  that  little  lake,  where  the  iulet  comes  flowing 


BARK  C.U)I.>J   AT   (.'.VLAMITr   PO-NU. 


sluggishly  from  a  dark  ravine  scooped  from  the  mountain  slope,  we  built 
a  bark  cabin,  and  encamped  for  the  night. 

That  tiny  lake  is  called  Calamity  Pond,  iu  commemoration  of  a  sad 
circumstance  that  occurred  near  the  spot  where  we  erected  our  cabin,  iu 
September,  184.5.  Mr.  Henderson,  of  the  Adirondack  Iron  •  Company, 
already  mentioned,  was  there  with  his  son  and  other  attendants.  Near 
the  margin  of  the  inlet  is  a  flat  rock.  On  this,  as  he  landed  from  a  scow, 
Mr.  Henderson  attempted  to  lay  his  pistol,  holding  the  muzzle  in  his 
hand.  It  discharged,  and  the  contents  entering  his  body,  wounded  him 
mortally:  he  lived  only  half-an-hour.     A  rude  bier  was  constructed  of 


THE    HUDSON.  31 


bouglis,  on  -whicli  his  body  was  carried  to  Adirondack  village.  It  was 
taken  down  Saiidford  Lake  in  a  boat  to  Tahawus,  and  from  thence  again 
carried  on  a  bier  through  the  wilderness,  iifteeu  miles  to  the  western 
termination  of  the  road  from  Scarrou  valley,  then  in  process  of  construc- 
tion. From  thence  it  was  conveyed  to  his  home  at  Jersey  City,  and  a  few 
years  afterward  his  family  erected  an  elegant  monument  upon  the  rock 
where  he  lost  his  life.  It  is  of  the  light  Xcw  Jersey  sandstone,  eight  feet 
in  height,  and  bears  the  following  inscription: — "This  monument  was 
erected  by  filial  affection  to  the  memory  of  Dwrn  Henbersox,  who  lost 


IIEXDERSON'S  MOXUMEST. 

his  life  on  this  spot,  3rd  September,  1845."  Beneath  the  inscription,  in 
high  relief,  is  a  chalice,  book,  and  anchor. 

Tlie  lane  through  the  woods  just  mentioned  was  cut  for  the  purpose  of 
allowing  the  transportation  of  this  monument  upon  a  sledge  in  winter, 
drawn  by  oxen.  All  the  way  the  road  was  made  passable  liy  packing 
the  snow  between  the  boulders,  and  in  this  labour  several  days  were  con- 
sumed.    The  monument  weighs  a  ton. 

"While  Preston  and  myself  were  building  the  bark  cabin,  in  a  manner 
similar  to  the  bush  one  already  described,  and  Mrs.  Lossing  was  preparing 
a  place  upon  the  clean  grass  near  the  fire  for  our  supper,  Mr.  Buckingliam 
and  Sabattis  went  out  upon  the  lake  on  a  rough  raft,  and  caught  over  two 


32  THE    HUDSON. 


dozen  trout.  Iipon  these  wo  supped  and  breakfasted.  The  night  was 
cold,  and  at  early  dawn  we  found  the  hoar-frost  lying  upon  every  leaf  and 
blade  around  us.  Beautiful,  indeed,  was  that  dawning  of  the  last  day  of 
summer.  Prom  the  south-west  came  a  gentle  breeze,  bearing  upon  its 
wings  light  vapour,  that  flecked  the  whole  sky,  and  became  roseate  in  hue 
when  the  sun  touched  with  purple  light  the  summit  of  the  hills  westward 
of  us.  These  towered  in  grandeur  more  than  a  thousand  feet  above  the 
surface  of  the  lake,  from  which,  in  the  kindling  morning  light,  went  up, 
in  myriads  of  spiral  threads,  a  mist,  softly  as  a  spirit,  and  melted  in  the 
first  sunbeam. 

At  eight  o'clock  we  resumed  our  journey  over  a  much  rougher  way  than 
we  had  yet  travelled,  for  there  was  nothing  but  a  dim  and  obstructed 
Ininter's  trail  to  follow.  This  we  pursued  nearly  two  miles,  when  we 
struck  the  outlet  of  Lake  Golden,  at  its  confluence  with  the  Opalescent 
llivc)',  that  comes  rushing  down  in  continuous  rapids  and  cascades  from 
the  foot  of  Tahawus.  The  lake  was  only  a  few  rods  distant.  Intending 
to  visit  it  on  our  retni'u,  we  contented  ourselves  with  brief  glimpses  of  it 
through  the  trees,  and  of  tall  Mount  Colden,  or  !N[ount  M'^Martin,  that 
rises  in  magnificence  from  its  eastern  shore. 

The  drought  that  still  prevailed  over  northern  New  York  and  New 
England  had  so  diminished  the  volume  of  the  Opalescent  lli\'er,  that 
we  walked  more  than  four  miles  in  the  bed  of  the  stream  upon  boulders 
which  fill  it.  We  crossed  it  a  hundred  times  or  more,  picking  our  waj', 
and  sometimes  compelled  to  go  into  the  woods  in  passing  a  cascade.  The 
stream  is  broken  into  falls  and  swift  rapids  the  whole  distance  that  we 
followed  it,  and,  when  full,  it  must  present  a  grand  spectacle.  At  one 
place  the  river  had  assumed  the  bed  of  a  displaced  trap  dyke,  by  which 
the  rook  has  been  intersected.  The  walls  arc  perpendicular,  and  only  a 
few  feet  apart — so  near  that  the  branches  of  the  trees  on  the  summits 
interlace..  Through  this  the  water  rushes  for  several  rods,  and  then 
leaps  into  a  dark  chasm,  full  fifty  feet  perpendicular,  and  emerges 
among  a  mass  of  immense  boulders.  The  Indians  called  this  cascade 
She-gwi-en-dawhve,  or  the  Hanging  Spear.  A  short  distance  above  is  a 
wild  rapid,  which  they  called  Kas-ko7igsha(li,  or  Broken  Water. 

The  stones  in  this  river  vary  in  size,  from  tiny  pebbles  to  boulders 


THE    HUDSON. 


33 


of  a  thousand  tons ;  the  smaller  ones  made  smooth  by  rolling,  the  larger 
ones,  yet  angular  and  massive,  persistently  defying  the  rushing  torrent 
in  its  maddest  career.  They  arc  composed  chiefly  of  the  beautiful 
labradorite,  or  opalescent  feldspar,  which  form  the  great  mass  of  the 
Aganus-ckmt,  or  Black  Mountain 
range,    as   the   Indians   called  this  " 

Adirondack  group,  because  of  the 
dark  aspect  which  their  sombre 
cedars,  and  spruce,  and  cliffs  present 
at  a  distance.  The  bed  of  the  stream 
is  full  of  that  exquisitely  beautiful 
mineral.  "\Ve  saw  it  glittering  in 
splendour,  in  pebbles  and  large 
boulders,  when  the  sunlight  fell  full 
upon  the  shallow  water.  A  rich  blue 
is  the  predominant  colour,  some- 
times mingled  with  a  brilliant 
green.  Gold  and  bronze-coloured 
specimens  have  been  discovered,  and, 
occasionally,  a  completely  iridescent 
piece  may  be  found.  It  is  to  the 
abundance  of  these  stones  that  the 
river  is  indebted  for  its  beautiful 
name.  It  is  one  of  the  main  sources 
of  the  Hudson,  and  falls  into  Sand- 
ford  Lake,  a  few  miles  below 
Adirondack  village. 

We  followed  the  Opalescent  River 
to  the  foot  of  the  Peak  of  Tahawus, 
on  the  borders  of  the   high  valley 

which  separates  that  mountain  from  Jlount  Golden,  at  an  elevation  nine 
hundred  feet  above  the  highest  peaks  of  the  C'attskill  range  on  the  Lower 
Hudson.  There  the  water  is  very  cold,  the  forest  trees  are  somewhat 
stunted  and  thickly  planted,  and  the  solitude  complete.  The  silence  was 
almost  oppressive.     Game-birds  and  beasts  of  the  chase  are  there  almost 


FALL   IS   THE  OPALE.'^CKNT  KIVEB. 


34 


THE    HUDSON. 


unknown.  The  wild  cat  and  wolverine  alone  prowl  over  that  lofty  valley, 
where  rises  one  of  the  chief  fountains  of  the  Hudson,  and  we  heard  the 
voice  of  no  li\-ing  creature  excepting  the  hoarse  croak  of  the  raven. 

It  was  noon  when  we  reached  this  point  of  departure  for  the  summit  of 
Tahawus.  "We  had  been  four  hours  travelling  six  miles,  and  yet  in  that 
pure  mountain  air  we  felt  very  little  ftitigue.  There  we  found  an 
excellent  bark  "camp,"  and  traces  of  recent  occupation.     Among  them 


CLTMBING   TAIIAWIS. 


was  part  of  a  metropolitan  newspaper,  and  light  ashes.  "We  dined  upon 
bread  and  butter  and  maple  sugar,  in  a  sunny  spot  in  front  of  the  cabin, 
and  then  commenced  the  ascent,  leaving  our  provisions  and  other  things 
at  the  camp,  where  we  intended  to  repose  for  the  night.  The  journey 
upward  was  two  miles,  at  an  angle  of  forty-five  degrees  to  the  base  of  the 
rocky  pinnacle.  AVe  had  no  path  to  follow.  The  guides  "  blazed  "  the 
larger  trees  (striking  off  chips  with  their  axes),  that  they  might  with 
more  ease  find  theii-  way  back  to  the  camp.     Almost  the  entire  surface 


THE    HUDSON. 


35 


was  covered  with,  boulders,  shrouded  in  the  most  beautiful  alpine  mosses. 
From  among  these  shot  up  dwaiiing  pines  and  spruces,  which  diminished 
in  height  at  every  step.  Through  their  thick  horizontal  branches  it  was 
difficult  to  pass.  Here  and  there  among  the  rocks  was  a  free  spot,  where 
the  bright  trifoliolate  oxalis,  or  wood-sorrel,  flourished,  and  the  shrub  of 
the  wild  currant,  and  gooseberry,  and  the  tree-cranberry  appeared.  At 
length  we  reached  the  foot  of  the  open  rocky  pinnacle,  where  only  tliick 
mosses,  lichens,  a  few  alpine  plants,  and  little  groves  of  dwarfed  balsam, 
are  seen.  The  latter  trees,  not  more  than  five  feet  in  height,  are,  most  of 
them,  centenarians.  Their  stems,  not  larger  than  a  strong  man's  wrist, 
exhibited,  when  cut,  over  one  hun- 
dred concentric  rings,  each  of  which 
indicates  the  gi'owth  of  a  year.  Our 
journey  now  became  still  more  diffi- 
cult, at  the  same  time  more  interest- 
ing, for,  as  we  emerged  from  the 
forest,  the  magnificent  panorama  of 
mountains  that  lay  around  us  burst 
upon  the  vision.  Along  steep  rocky 
slopes  and  ledges,  and  around  and 
beneath  huge  stones  a  thousand  tons 
in  weight,  some  of  them  apparently 
poised,  as  if  ready  for  a  sweep  down 
the  mountain,  we  made  our  way 
cautiously,  having  at  times  no  other 
support  than  the  strong  moss,  and 
occasionally  a  gnarled  shrub  that 
sprung  from  the  infrequent  fissures, 
where  the  dwarf  balsams  grow.  Upon  one  of  these,  within  a  hundi-od 
feet  of  the  summit,  we  found  a  spring  of  very  cold  water,  and  near  it 
quite  thick  ice.  This  spring  is  one  of  the  remote  sources  of  the  Hudson. 
It  bubbles  from  the  base  of  a  huge  mass  of  loose  rocks  (wliich,  like  all 
the  other  portions  of  the  peak,  are  composed  of  the  beautiful  labrado- 
rite),  and  sends  down  a  little  stream  into  the  Opalescent  Kiver,  from 
whose  bed  we  had  just  ascended.     Mr.  Buckingham  had  now  gained 


SPRING  ON  THE  PEAK   OF  TAHAWTS. 


"We  rested   upon   small   terraces. 


3G 


THE    HUDSON. 


the  summit,  and  ■waved  his  hat,  in  token  of  triumph,  and  a  few  minutes 

later  wc  wore  at  his  side,  forgetful,  in  the  exhilaration  of  the  moment, 
of  every  fatigue  and  danger  that  we  had  encountered.  Indeed  it  was  a 
triumph  for  us  all,  for  few  persons  have  ever  attempted  the  ascent  of  that 
mountain,  lying  in  a  deep  wilderness,  hard  to  penetrate,  the  nearest  point 
of  even  a  bridle  path,  on  the  side  of  our  approach,  being  ten  miles  from 
the  base  of  its  peak.  Especially  difficult  is  it  for  the  feet  of  woman  to 
reach  the  lofty  summit  of  the  Shy-piercer — almost  six  thousand  feet 
above  the  sea — for  her  skirts  form  gi'cat  impediments.  Mrs.  Lossing,  we 
were  afterwards  informed  by  the  oldest  hunter  and  guide  in  all  that 


HOSPICE  ON  THE  PEAK   OF  TAHAWUb. 


region  (John  Cheney),  is  only  the  third  woman  who  has  ever  accomplished 
the  difficult  feat. 

The  summit  of  Tahawus  is  bare  rook,  about  four  hundred  feet  in  length 
and  one  hundred  in  breadth,  with  an  elevation  of  ten  or  twelve  feet  at 
the  south-western  end,  that  may  be  compared  to  the  heel  of  an  upturned 
boot,  the  remainder  of  the  surface  forming  the  sole.  In  a  nook  on  the 
southern  side  of  this  heel,  was  a  small  liut,  made  of  loose  stones  gathered 
from  the  summit,  and  covered  with  moss.  It  was  erected  the  previous 
year  by  persons  from  New  York,  and  had  been  occupied  by  others  a  fort- 


THE    HUDSON.  37 


night  before  our  •visit.  Witliin  the  hut  we  found  a  piece  of  paper,  on 
which  was  written  : — "  This  hospice,  erected  by  a  party  from  New  York, 
August  19,  1858,  is  intended  for  the  use  and  comfort  of  visitors  to 
Tahawus.— F.  S.  P.— M.  C— F.  M.  N."  Under  this  was  written  :— 
"  This  hospice  was  occupied  over  night  of  August  14,  1859,  by  A.  G.  C. 
and  T.  E.  D.  Sun  rose  fourteen  minutes  to  five."  Under  this  : — 
"  Tahawtjs  House  Kegistee,  August  14,  1859,  Alfred  G.  Compton,  and 
Theodore  E.  Davis,  New  York.  August  16,  Charles  Newman,  Stamford, 
Connecticut;  Charies  Bedfield,  Elizabeth  Town,  New  York."  To  these 
we  added  our  own  names,  and  those  of  the  guides. 

Our  view  from  the  summit  of  Tahawus  will  ever  form  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  pictures  in  memoiy ;  and  yet  it  may  not  properly  be  called  a 
picture.  It  is  a  topographical  map,  exhibiting  a  surface  diversified  by 
mountains,  lakes,  and  valleys.  The  day  was  very  pleasant,  yet  a  cold 
north-westerly  wind  was  sweeping  over  the  summit  of  the  mountain.  A 
few  clouds,  sufficient  to  cast  fine  shadows  upon  the  earth,  were  floating 
not  far  above  us,  and  on  the  east,  when  we  approached  the  summit  at 
three  o'clock,  an  iridescent  mist  was  slightly  veiling  a  group  of  mountains, 
from  theii'  thick  wooded  bases  in  the  valleys,  to  their  bold  rocky  summits. 
Our  stand-point  being  the  highest  in  all  that  region,  there  was  nothing 
to  obstruct  the  view.  To-tvar-loon-dah,  or  Hill  of  Storms  (Mount 
Emmons),  Ou-lwr-lah,  or  Big  Eye  (Mount  Seward),  Wah-o-par-te-nie,  or 
White-face  Mountain,  and  the  Giant  of  the  Valley — all  rose  peerless  above 
the  other  hUls  around  tis,  excepting  Colden  and  M'lntjre,  that  stood 
apparently  within  trumpet-call  of  Tahawus,  as  fitting  companions,  but 
over  whose  summits,  likewise,  we  could  look  away  to  the  dark  forests  of 
Franklin  and  St.  Lawrence  Counties,  in  the  far  north-west.  Northward 
we  could  see  the  hiUs  melting  into  the  great  St.  Lawrence  level,  out  of 
which  arose  the  Royal  Mountain  back  of  the  city  of  Montreal.  Eastward, 
full  sixty  miles  distant,  lay  the  magnificent  Green  Mountains,  that  give 
name  to  the  state  of  Vermont,  and  through  a  depression  of  that  range, 
we  saw  distinctly  the  great  Mount  Washington  among  the  White  Hills 
of  New  Hampshire,  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  distant.  Southward  the 
view  was  bounded  by  the  higher  peaks  of  the  Cattskills,  or  Katzbergs, 
and   westward   by   the    mountain   ranges   in  Hamilton   and   Herkimer 


38  THE   HUDSON. 


Counties.  At  our  feet  reposed  the  great  -wilderness  of  northern  New 
York,  full  a  hundred  miles  in  length,  and  eighty  in  breadth,  lying  in  parts 
of  seven  counties,  and  equal  in  area  to  several  separate  smaller  States  of 
the  Union.  On  every  side  bright  lakes  were  gleaming,  some  nestling  in 
unbroken  forests,  and  others  with  their  shores  sparsely  dotted  mth  clear- 
ings, from  which  arose  the  smoke  from  the  settler's  cabin.  "We  counted 
twenty-seven  lakes,  including  Champlain — the  Indian  Can-i-a-de-ri  Gua- 
run-te,  or  Door  of  the  Country — which  stretched  along  the  eastern  view 
one  hundred  and  forty  miles,  and  at  a  distance  of  about  fifty  miles  at  the 
nearest  point.  We  could  see  the  sails  of  water-craft  like  white  specks 
upon  its  bosom,  and,  with  our  telescope,  could  distinctly  discern  the 
houses  in  BurUngton,  on  the  eastern  shore  of  the  lake. 

From  our  point  of  view  we  could  comprehend  the  emphatic  significance 
of  the  Indian  idea  of  Lake  Champlain — the  Door  of  the  Country.  It  fills 
the  bottom  of  an  immense  vaUcy,  that  stretches  southward  between  the 
great  mountain  ranges  of  New  York  and  New  England,  from  the 
St.  Lawrence  level  toward  the  valley  of  the  Hudson,  from  which  it  is 
separated  by  a  slightly  elevated  ridge.*  To  the  fierce  Huron  of  Canada, 
who  loved  to  make  war  upon  the  more  southern  Iroquois,  this  lake  was  a 
wide  open  door  for  his  passage.  Through  it  many  brave  men,  aborigines 
and  Emopeans,  have  gone  to  the  war-paths  of  New  York  and  New 
England,  never  to  return. 

Standing  upon  Tahawus,  it  required  very  little  exercise  of  the  imagi- 
nation to  behold  the  stately  procession  of  historic  men  and  events,  passing 
through  that  open  door.     First  in  dim  shadows  were  the  dusky  warriors 


•  In  the  introduction  to  his  published  sermon,  preached  at  Plymouth,  in  New  England,  in  the  year 
1621  (and  the  first  ever  preached  there),  the  Rev.  Robert  Cushman,  speaking  of  that  country,  says  : — 
"So  far  as  we  can  find,  it  is  an  island,  and  near  about  the  quantity  of  England,  being  cut  out  fnjm  the 
mainland  in  America,  as  England  is  from  the  main  of  Europe,  by  a  great  arm  of  the  sea  [Hudson's 
River],  which  entereth  in  forty  degrees,  and  runneth  up  nonh-west  and  by  west,  and  goeth  out,  either 
into  the  South  Sea  IPacific  Ocean],  or  else  into  the  Bay  of  Canada  [the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence]."  The 
old  divine  was  nearly  right  in  his  conjecture  that  New  England  was  an  island.  It  is  a  peninsula, 
connected  to  the  main  by  a  very  narrow  isthmus,  the  extremities  of  which  are  at  the  villages  of 
Whitehall,  on  Lake  Champlain,  and  Fort  Edwanl,  on  the  Hudson,  about  twenty-five  miles  apart.  The 
lowest  portion  of  that  isthmus  is  not  more  than  fifty  feet  above  Lake  Champlain,  whose  waters  are  only 
ninety  above  the  sea.  This  isthmus  is  made  still  narrower  by  the  waters  of  Wood  Creek,  which  tlow 
into  Lake  Champlain,  and  of  Fort  Edward  Creek,  which  empty  into  the  Hudson.  These  are  navigable 
for  light  canoes,  at  some  seasons  of  the  year,  to  within  a  mile  and  a-half  of  each  other.  The  canal, 
which  now  cotmects  the  Huiison  and  Lake  Champlain,  really  makes  New  England  an  island. 


THE    HUDSOX.  39 


of  the  ante-Columbinn  period,  darting  swiftly  through  in  their  baik 
canoes,  intent  upon  blood  and  plunder.  Then  came  Champlain  and  his 
men  [1609],  ■with  guns  and  sabres,  to  aid  the  Hurons  in  contests  with 
the  Adirondacks  and  other  Iroquois  at  Crown  Point  and  Ticonderoga. 
Then  came  French  and  Indian  allies,  led  by  Marin  [1745],  passing 
swiftly  through  that  door,  and  sweeping  with  terrible  force  down  the 
Hudson  vaUey  to  Saratoga,  to  smite  the  Dutch  and  English  settlers  there. 
Again  French  and  Indian  warriors  came,  led  by  Montcalm,  Dieskau,  and 
others  [1755-1759],  to  drive  the  English  from  that  door,  and  secure  it 
for  the  house  of  Bourbon.  A  little  later  came  troops  of  several 
nationalities,  with  Burgoyne  at  their  head  [1777],  rushing  through  that 
door  with  power,  driving]  American  republicans  southward,  like  chaff 
before  the  wind,  and  sweeping  victoriously  down  the  valley  of  the  Hudson 
to  Saratoga  and  beyond.  And,  lastly,  came  another  British  force,  with 
Sir  George  Prevost  at  their  head  [1814],  to  take  possession  of  that  door, 
but  were  turned  back  at  the  northern  threshold  with  discomfiture.  In 
the  peaceful  present  that  door  stands  wide  open,  and  people  of  all  nations 
may  pass  through  it  unquestioned.  But  the  Indian  is  seldom  seen  at  the 
portal. 


A   07  rrrs  "^ 


CHAPTER    III. 


I  TIE  cold  increased  every  moment  as  the  sun  declined, 
and,  after  remaining  on  the  summit  of  Tahawus 
only  an  hour,  we  descended  to  the  Opalescent 
River,  where  we  encamped  for  the  night.     To- 
ward morning  there  was  a  rain-shower,  and  the 
water  came  trickling  upon  us  through  the  light 
bark  roof  of  our  "  camp."     But  the  clouds  broke 
at  sunrise,  and,  excepting   a  copious  shower  of 
small  hail,  and  one  or  two  of  light  rain,  we  had 
pleasant  weather   the  remainder   of  the   day.      "VVe   de- 
scended the  Opalescent  in  its  rocky  bed,  as  we  went  up, 
and  at  noon  dined  on  the  margin  of  Lake  Colden,  just 
after  a  slight  shower  had  passed  by. 

"We  were  now  at  an  elevation  of  almost  three  thousand 
feet  above  tide  water.  In  lakes  Colden  and  Avalanche,  which  lie  close 
to  each  other,  there  are  no  fishes.  Only  lizards  and  leeches  occupy 
their  cold  waters.  All  is  silent  and  solitary  there.  The  bald  eagle 
sweeps  over  them  occasionally,  or  perches  upon  a  lofty  pine,  but  the 
mournful  voice  of  the  Great  Loon,  or  Diver  ( Coli/mhus  ghcialis),  heard 
over  all  the  waters  of  northern  New'  York  and  Canada,  never  awakens 
the  echoes  of  these  solitary  lakes.*  These  waters  lie  in  a  high  basin 
between  the  Mount  Colden  and  Mount  M'Intyre  ranges,  and  have 
experienced  great  changes.  Avalanche  Lake,  evidently  once  a  part  of 
Lake  Colden,  is  about  eighty  feet  higher  than  the  latter,  and  more  than 
two  miles  from  it.  They  have  been  separated  by,  perhaps,  a  series  of 
avalanches,  or  mountain  slides,  which  still  occur  in  that  region.     From 


*  The  water  view  in  tin 
I  the  distance. 


picture  of  the  Loeu  is  a  scene  on  Harris's  Lake,  witli  Qoodenow  Mountain 


THE    HUDSON. 


41 


the  top  of  Tahawus  we  saw  tlie  white  glare  of  several,  striping  the  sides 
of  mountain  cones. 

At  three  o'clock  wo  reached  onr  camp  at  Calamity  Pond,  and  just 
before  sunset  emerged  from  the  forest  into  the  open  fields  near  Adiron- 
dack village,  where  we  regaled  ourselves  with  the  bountiful  fruitage  of 
the  raspberry  shrub.  At  Mr.  Hunter's  we  found  kind  and  generous 
entertainment,  and  at  an  early  hour  the  next  morning  we  started  for  the 
great  Indian  Pass,  four  miles  distant. 

Half  a  mile  from  Henderson  Lake  we  crossed  its  outlet  upon  a  pictu- 
resque bridge,  and  following  a  causeway  another  half  a  mile  through  a 


clearing,  we  penetrated  the  forest,  and  struck  one  of  the  chief  branches 
of  the  Upper  Hudson,  that  comes  from  the  rocky  chasms  of  that  Pass. 
Our  journey  was  much  more  difficult  than  to  Tahawus.  The  under- 
growth of  the  forest  was  more  dense,  and  trees  more  frequently  lay 
athwart  the  dim  trail.  "We  crossed  the  stream  several  times,  and,  as  we 
ascended,  the  valley  narrowed  until  we  entered  the  rocky  gorge  between 
the  steep  slopes  of  Mount  M'Intyre  and  the  cliffs  of  "Wall-face  Mountain. 
There  we  encountered  enormous  masses  of  rocks,  some  worn  by  the 
abrasion  of  the  elements,  some  angular,  some  bare,  and  some  covered 
with  moss,  and  many  of  them  bearing  large  trees,  whose  roots,  clasping 


42 


THE    HUDSON. 


them  on  all  sides,  strike  into  the  earth  for  sustenance.  One  of  the 
masses  presented  a  singular  appearance  ;  it  is  of  cubic  form,  its  summit 
full  thirty  feet  from  its  base,  and  upon  it  was  quite  a  grove  of  hemlock 
and  cedar  trees.  Around  and  partly  under  this  and  others  lying  loosely, 
apparently  kept  from  rolling  by  roots  and  vines,  we  were  compelled  to 
clamber  a  long  distance,  when  we  reached  a  point  more  than  one  hundred 


LAKE  GOLDEN. 


feet  above  the  bottom  of  the  gorge,  where  we  could  see  the  famous  pass 
in  all  its  wild  grandeur.  Before  us  arose  a  perpendicular  cliff,  nearly 
twelve  hundi'ed  feet  from  base  to  summit,  as  raw  in  appearance  as  if  cleft 
only  yesterday.  Above  us  sloped  M'Intyre,  still  more  lofty  than  tlie 
cliff  of  "Wall-face,  and  in  the  gorge  lay  huge  piles  of  rock,  chaotic  in 
position,  grand  in  dimensions,  and  awful  in  general  aspect.     They  appear 


I 


THE    HUDSON. 


43 


to  have  been  cast  in  there  by  some  terrible  convulsion  not  very  remote. 

Within  the  memory  of  Sabattis,  this  region  has  been  shaken  by  an  earth- 
quake, and  no  doubt  its  poTver,  and  the  lightning,  and  the  frost,  have 
hurled  these  masses  from  that  impending  cliif.  Through  these  the 
waters  of  this  branch  of  the  Hudson,  bubbling  from  a  spring  not  far 
distant  (close  by  a  fountain  of  the  Au  Sable),  find  their  way.  Here  the 
liead-waters  of  this  river  commingle  in  the  Spring  season,  and  when  they 
separate  they  find  their  way  to  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  as  we  have  observed, 


OUTLET  OF  HESBEBSOS  LAKE. 


at  points  a  thousand  miles  apart.  The  margin  of  the  stream  is  too  rugged 
and  cavernous  in  tlie  Pass  for  human  footsteps  to  follow. 

Just  at  the  lower  entrance  to  the  gorge,  on  the  margin  of  the  little 
brook,  we  dined,  and  then  retraced  our  steps  to  the  village,  stopping  on 
the  way  to  view  the  dreary  swamp  at  the  head  of  Henderson  Lake, 
where  the  Hudson,  flowing  from  the  Pass,  enters  it.  Water,  and  not  fire, 
has  blasted  the  trees,  and  their  erect  stems  and  prostrate  branches,  white 
and  ghost-like  in  appearance,  make  a  tangled  covering  over  many  acres. 

That  night  we  slept  soundly  again  at  Mr.  Hunter's,  and  in  the  morn- 
ing left  in  a  waggon  for  the  valley  of  the  Scarron.  During  the  past  four 
days  we  had  travelled  thirty  miles  on  foot  in  the  tangled  forest,  camped 


44  THE   HUDSON. 


out  two  nights,  and  seen  some  of  nature's  -wildest  and  grandest  lineaments. 
These  mountain  aud  lake  districts,  whiuh  form  the  wilderness  of  northern 
New  York,  give  to  tlie  tourist  most  exquisite  sensations,  and  the  physical 
system  appears  to  take  in  health  at  every  pore.  Invalids  go  in  witli 
hardly  strength  enough  to  reach  some  quiet  log-house  in  a  clearing,  and 
come  out  with  strong  quick  pulse  and  elastic  muscles.  Every  year  the 
number  of  tourists  and  sportsmen  who  go  there  rapidly  increases,  and 
women  begin  to  find  more  pleasure  and  health  in  that  wilderness  than  at 
fashionable  watering-places.     No  wild  country  in  the  world  can  offer 


TREES  ON  BOULDERS. 


more  solid  attractions  to  those  who  desire  to  spend  a  few  weeks  of  leisure 
away  from  the  haunts  of  men.  Pure  air  and  water,  and  game  in 
abundance,  may  there  be  found,  while  in  all  that  region  not  a  venomous 
reptile  or  poisonous  plant  may  bo  seen,  and  the  beasts  of  prey  are  too  few 
and  shy  to  cause  the  least  alarm  to  the  most  timid.  The  climate  is 
delightful,  and  there  are  fertile  valleys  among  those  rugged  hills  that 
wUl  yet  smile  in  beauty  under  the  cultivator's  hand.  It  has  been  called 
by  the  uninformed  the  "  Siberia  of  New  York;"  it  may  more  properly 
be  called  the  "  Smtzcrland  of  the  United  States." 


THE  Hrnsoy. 


45 


The  -wind  came  from  among  the  mountains  in  fitful  gusts,  thick  mists 
were  sweeping  around  the  peaks  and  through  the  gorges,  and  there  were 
frequent  dashes  of  rain,  sometimes  falling  like  showers  of  gold,  in  the 
sunlight  that  gleamed  through  the  broken  clouds,  on  the  morning  when 
we  left  Adirondack  village.  "We  had  hired  a  strong  waggon,  with  three 
spring  seats,  and  a  team  of  experienced  horses,  to  convey  us  from,  the 
heart  of  the  wilderness  to  the  Scarron  valley,  thirty  miles  distant,  and 
after  breakfast  we  left  the  kind  family  of  Mr.  Hunter,  accompanied  by 
Sabattis  and  Preston,  who  rode  with  us  most  of  the  way  for  ten  miles,  in 


ADIS05DJLCE,  OB  ISDIAS   PASS. 


the  direction  of  their  homes.  Our  driver  was  the  owner  of  the  team — u 
careful,  intelligent,  good-natured  man,  who  lived  near  Tahawus,  at  the 
foot  of  Sandford  Lake.  But  in  all  our  experience  in  travelling,  we  never 
endured  such  a  journey.  The  highway,  for  at  least  twenty-four  of  the 
thirty  mUes,  is  what  is  technically  called  corduroy — a  sort  of  corrugated 
stripe  of  logs  ten  feet  wide,  laid  through  the  woods,  and  dignified  with 
the  title  of  "  The  State  road."  It  gives  to  a  waggon  the  jolting  motion 
of  the  "  dyspeptic  chair,"  and  in  that  way  we  were  "  exercised  "  all  day 
long,  except  when  dining  at  the  Tahawus  House,  on  some  wild  pigeons 


46 


THE   HUDSON. 


shot  by  Sabattis  on  the  way.  That  inn  was  upon  the  road,  near  the  site 
of  Tahawus  village,  at  the  foot  of  Sandford  Lake,  and  was  a  half-way 
house  between  Long  Lake  and  Root's  Inn  in  the  Searron  valley,  toward 
which  we  were  travelling.  There  we  parted  with  our  excellent  guides, 
after  giving  them  a  sincere  assurance  that  we  should  recommend  all 
tourists  and  hunters,  who  may  visit  the  head  waters  of  the  Hudson,  to 
procure  their  services,  if  possible. 

About  a  mile  on  our  way  from  the  Tahawus  House,  we  came  to  the 
dwelling  and  farm  of  John  Cheney,  the  oldest  and  most  famous  hunter 


HENDERSON'S  LAKE. 


and  guide  in  all  that  region.  He  then  seldom  went  far  into  the  woods, 
for  he  was  beginning  to  feel  the  effects  of  age  and  a  laborious  life.  We 
called  to  pay  our  respects  to  one  so  widely  known,  and  yet  so  isolated, 
and  were  disappointed.  Ho  was  away  on  a  short  hunting  excursion,  for 
he  loves  the  forest  and  the  chase  with  all  the  enthusiasm  of  his  young . 
manhood.  He  is  a  slightly-built  man,  about  sixty  years  of  age.  He 
was  the  guide  for  the  scientific  corps,  who  made  a  geological  rcconnoissance 
of  that  region  many  years  before,  and  for  a  quarter  of  a  century  he  had 
there  battled  the  elements  and  the  beasts  with  a  strong  arm  and  unflinch- 
ing will.     Many  of  the  tales  of  his  experience    are  full  of  the  wildest 


THE    HUDSON. 


romance,  and  we  hoped  to  hear  the  narrative  of  some  adventure  from  his 

own  lips. 

For  many  years  John  carried  no  other  weapons  than  a  huge  jack-knife 
and  a  pistol.  One  of  the  most  stirring  of  his  thousand  adventures  in  the 
woods  is  connected  with  the  history  of  that  pistol.  It  has  heen  related 
by  an  acquaintance  of  the  writer,  a  man  of  rare  genius,  and  who,  for 
many  years,  has  been  an  inmate  of  an  asylum  for  the  insane,  in  a  neigh- 
bouring State.  John  Cheney  was  his  guide  more  than  twenty  years 
before  our  visit.  The  time  of  the  adventure  alluded  to  was  winter,  and 
the  snow  lay  four  feet  deep  in  the  woods.  John  went  out  upon  snow- 
shoes,  with  his  rifle  and  dogs.  He  wandered  far  from  the  settlement,  and 
made  his  bed  at  night  in  the  deep  snow.  One  morning  he  arose  to 
examine  his  traps,  near  which  he  would  lie  encamped  for  weeks  in 
complete  solitude.  When  hovering  around  one  of  them,  he  discovered  a 
famished  wolf,  who,  unappalled  by  the  hunter,  retired  only  a  few  steps, 
and  then,  turning  round,  stood  watching  his  movements.  "I  ought,  by 
rights,"  said  John,  "to  have  waited  for  my  two  dogs,  who  could  not  have 
been  far  off,  but  the  cretur  looked  so  sassy,  standing  there,  that  though  I 
had  not  a  bullet  to  spare,  I  could  not  lielp  letting  into  him  with  my 
rifle."  John  missed  his  aim,  and  the  animal  gave  a  spring,  as  he  was  in 
the  act  of  firing,  and  turned  instantly  upon  him  before  he  could  reload 
his  piece.  So  effective  was  the  unexpected  attack  of  the  wolf,  that  his 
fore-paws  were  upon  Cheney's  snow-shoes  before  he  could  rally  for  the 
fight.  The  forester  became  entangled  in  the  deep  drift,  and  sank  upon 
his  back,  keeping  the  wolf  at  bay  only  by  striking  at  him  with  his 
clubbed  rifle.  The  stock  of  it  was  broken  into  pieces  in  a  few  moments, 
and  it  would  have  fared  ill  with  the  stark  woodsman  if  the  wolf,  instead 
of  making  at  his  enemy's  throat  when  he  had  him  thus  at  disadvantage, 
had  not,  with  blind  fury,  seized  the  barrel  of  the  gun  in  his  jaws.  StiU 
the  fight  was  unequal,  as  John,  half  buried  in  the  snow,  could  make  use 
of  but  one  of  his  hands.  He  shouted  to  his  dogs,  but  one  of  them  only,  a 
young,  untrained  hound,  made  his  appearance.  Emerging  from  a  thicket 
he  caught  sight  of  his  master,  lying  apparently  at  the  mercy  of  the 
ravenous  beast,  uttered  a  yell  of  fear,  and  fled  howling  to  the  woods 
again.     "  Had  I  had  one  shot  left,"  said  Cheney,  "  I  would  have  given 


48  THE   HUDSON. 


it  to  that  dog  instead  of  dispatching  the  wolf  with  it."  In  the  exaspe- 
ration of  the  moment  John  might  have  extended  his  contempt  to  the 
whole  canine  race,  if  a  stauncher  friend  had  not,  at  the  moment,  inter- 
posed to  vindicate  their  character  for  courage  and  fidelity.  All  this 
had  passed  in  a  moment ;  the  wolf  was  still  grinding  the  iron  gun-barrel 
in  his  teeth — ho  had  even  once  wrenched  it  from  the  hand  of  the  hunter 
— when,  dashing  like  a  thunderbolt  between  the  combatants,  the  other 
hound  sprang  over  his  master's  body,  and  seized  the  wolf  by  the  throat. 
"  There  was  no  let  go  about  that  dog  when  he  once  took  hold,"  said  John. 
"If  the  barrel  had  been  red  hot  the  wolf  couldn't  have  dropped  it 
quicker,  and  it  would  have  clone  you  good,  I  tell  you,  to  see  that  old  dog 
drag  the  cretur's  head  down  in  the  snow,  while  I,  just  at  my  leisure, 
drove  the  iron  into  his  skull.  One  good,  fair  blow,  though,  with  a  heavy 
rifle  barrel,  on  the  back  of  the  head,  finished  him.  The  fellow  gave  a 
kind  o'  quiver,  stretched  out  his  hind  legs,  and  then  he  was  done  for.  I 
had  the  rifle  stocked  afterwards,  but  she  would  never  shoot  straight  since 
that  fight,  so  I  got  me  this  pistol,  which,  being  light  and  handy,  enables 
me  more  conveniently  to  carry  an  axe  upon  my  long  tramps,  and  make 
myself  comfortable  in  the  woods." 

Many  a  deer  has  John  since  killed  with  that  pistol.  "  It  is  curious," 
said  the  narrator,  "  to  see  him  draw  it  from  the  left  pocket  of  his  grey 
shooting-jacket,  and  bring  down  a  partridge.  I  have  myself  witnessed 
several  of  his  successful  shots  with  this  unpretending  shooting-iron,  and 
once  saw  him  knock  the  feathers  from  a  wild  duck  at  fifty  yards." 

Most  of  our  journey  toward  the  iSoarron  was  quite  easy  for  the  horses, 
for  we  were  descending  the  great  Champlain  slope.  The  roughness  of  the 
road  compelled  us  to  allow  the  team  to  walk  most  of  the  way.  The 
country  was  exceedingly  picturesque.  For  miles  our  track  lay  through 
the  solitary  forest,  its  sUencc  disturbed  only  by  the  sound  of  a  mountain 
brook,  or  the  voices  of  the  wind  among  the  hills.  The  winding  road  was 
closely  hemmed  by  trees  and  shrubs,  and  sentineled  by  lofty  pines,  and 
bii'ches,  and  tamaracks,  many  of  them  dead,  and  ready  to  fall  at  the  touch 
of  the  next  strong  wind.  Miles  apart  were  the  rude  cabins  of  the  settlers, 
until  we  came  out  upon  a  high,  rolling  valley,  surrounded  by  a  magnificent 
amphitheatre  of  hills.     Through  that  valley,  from  a  little  lake  toward 


A 


THE    HUDSON'. 


49 


the  sources  of  the  Au  Sable,  flows  the  cold  and  rapid  Boreas  River,  one 
oi  the  chiuf  tributaries  of  the  Upper  Hudson.  The  view  was  now  grand  : 
all  around  us  stood  the  great  hills,  wooded  to  their  summits,  and  over- 
looking deep  valleys,  wherein  the  primeval  forest  had  never  been  touched 
by  axe  or  fire ;  and  on  the  right,  through  tall  trees,  we  had  glimpses  of 
an  irregular  little  lake,  called  Cheney  Pond.  Por  three  or  four  miles 
after  passing  the  Boreas  we  went  over  a  most  dreary  "  clearing,"  dotted 
with  blackened  stumps  and  boulders  as  thick  as  hail,  a  cold  north-west 
wind  driving  at  our  backs.     In  the  midst  of  it  is  Wolf  Pond,  a  dark 


1. 1  I    UK  ■nil',   WILllEltXESS. 


water  fringed  with  a  tangled  growth  of  alders,  shrubs,  and  creepers,  and 
made  doubly  gloomy  by  hundreds  of  dead  trees,  that  shoot  up  from  the 
clidjjpnni/. 

This  was  the  "  darkness  just  before  daylight,"  for  we  soon  struck  a 
branch  of  the  Scarron,  rushing  in  cascades  through  a  rocky  ravine,  along 
whose  banks  we  found  an  excellent  road.  The  surrounding  country  was 
very  rugged  in  appeai'ance.  The  rocky  hills  had  been  denuded  by  fire, 
and  everything  in  nature  presented  a  strong  contrast  to  the  scene  that 
burst  upon  the  vision  at  sunset,  when,  from  the  brow  of  a  hill,  we  saw 
the  beautiful  Scarron  valley  smiling  before  us.     In  a  few  minutes  we 


50 


TUE    HUDSON. 


crossed  the  Scarron  River  over  a  covered  bridge,  and  found  ourselves 
fairly  out  of  the  wilderness,  at  a  new  and  spacious  inn,  kept  by  Russell 
Root,  a  small,  active,  and  obliging  man,  well  known  all  over  that  northern 
country.  His  house  was  the  point  of  departure  and  arrival  for  those  who 
take  what  may  bo  called  the  lower  route  to  and  from  the  hunting  and 
fishing  grounds  of  the  Upper  Hudson,  and  the  group  of  lakes  beyond. 
Over  his  door  a  pair  of  enormoiis  moose  horns  formed  an  appropriate  sign- 
board, for  he  was  both  quarter-master  and  commissary  of  sportsnu^n   in 


MOOSE  IIOKSS. 


that  region.     At  his  liouse  everything  necessary  for  tlio  woods  and  waters 
might  be  obtained. 

The  Scarron,  or  Schroon  River,  is  the  eastern  branch  of  the  Hudson. 
It  rises  in  the  heart  of  Esses  County,  and  flowing  southward  into  "Warren 
county,  receiving  in  its  course  the  waters  of  Paradox  and  Scarron,  or 
Schroon  Lake,  and  a  large  group  of  ponds,  forms  a  confluence,  near 
Warrensburg,  with  the  main  waters  of  the  Hudson,  that  come  do^vn  from 
the  Adirondack  region.  The  name  of  Schroon  for  this  branch  is  fixed  in 
the  popular  mind,  appears  in  books  and  on  maps,  and  is  heard  upon  every 
lip.  It  is  a  corruption  of  Scarron,  the  name  given  to  the  lake  by  French 
ofiicers,  who  were  stationed  at  Fort  St.  Frederick,  on  C'ro\\'n  Point,  at 
the  middle  of  the  last  century.  In  their  rambles  in  the  wilderness  on  the 
western  shore  of  Lake  C'hamplain,  they  discovered  a  beautiful  lake,  and 
named  it  in  gallant  homage  to  the  memory  of  the  widow  oftlie  poet 
Scarron,  who,  as  Madame  de  Maintenon,  became  the  queen  of  Louis  XIY- 
of  France.     The  name  was  afterwards  applied  to   the   river,   and  tlie 


THE    HUDSOJTN: 


■'■•'^1- 


oy 


JFOE^ 


51 


modem  conuiit  orthograplij'  and  pionunckition  were  unknown  before  tlie 
present  century,  at  the  beginning  of  which  settlements  were  first  com- 
menced in  that  region.  In  the  face  of  legal  documents,  common  speech, 
and  maps,  we  may  rightfully  call  it  Scarron  ;  for  the  antiquity  and 
respectability  of  an  error  are  not  valid  excuses  for  perpetuating  it. 

From  Eoot's  we  rode  down  the  valley  to  the  pleasant  little  village  on 
the  western  shore  of  Scarron  Lake.  AVe  turned  aside  to  visit  the  beautiful 
Paradox  Lake,  nestled  among  wooded  hills  a  short  distance  from  the  liver. 
It  is  separated  from  Scarron  Lake  by  a  low  alluvial  drift,  and  is  so  nearly 


OLiXET  UF  PAHAlJUX  LAKK. 


on  a  le\  el  \\  ith  the  river  into  which  it  empties,  that  when  torrents  from 
the  hills  swell  the  waters  of  that  stream,  a  current  flows  back  into 
Paradox  Lake,  making  its  outlet  an  /xlet  for  the  time.  From  this  circum- 
stance it  received  its  name.  We  rode  far  up  its  high  southern  shore  to 
enjoy  many  fine  views  of  the  lake  and  its  surroundings,  and  returning, 
lunched  in  the  shadows  of  trees  at  a  rustic  bridge  that  spans  its  outlet  a 
few  rods  below  the  lake. 

Scarron  Lake  is  a  beautiful  sheet  of  water,  ten  miles  in  length,  and 
about  a  mile  in  average  width.  It  is  ninety  miles  north  of  Albany,  and 
lies  partly  in  Essex  and  partly  in  Warren  County.     Its  aspect  is  interest- 


5^ 


THE    1IUD80X. 


ing  from  every  point  of  view.  The  gontle  slopes  ou  its  ■western  shore  are 
well  cultivated  and  thickly  inhabited,  the  result  of  sixty  years'  settlement, 
but  on  its  eastern  shore  are  precipitous  and  rugged  hills,  which  extend  in 
wild  and  picturesque  succession  to  Lake  Champlaiu,  fifteen  or  twenty 
miles  distant.  In  the  bosom  of  these  hills,  and  several  hundred  feet 
above  the  Scarron,  lies  Lake  Pharaoh,  a  body  of  cold  water  surrounded 
by  dark  mountains,  and  near  it  is  a  large  cluster  of  ponds,  all  of  which 
find  a  receiving  reservoir  in  Soarron  Lake,  and  make  its  outlet  a  large 
stream. 

In  the  lake  directly  in  front  of  Scarron  village  is  an  elliptical  island, 


ISi>LA   U±.LLA. 


containing  about  one  hundred  acres.  It  was  purchased  a  few  yecr.-i  ago 
by  Colonel  A.  L.  Ireland,  a  wealthy  gentleman  of  New  York,  who  went 
there  in  search  of  health,  and  who  spent  largo  sums  of  money  in  subduing 
the  savage  features  of  tlio  island,  erecting  a  pleasant  summer  mansion 
upon  it,  and  in  changing  the  roiigh  and  forbidding  aspect  of  the  whole 
domain  into  one  of  beauty  and  attractiveness.  TastLi  and  labour  hud 
wrought  wonderful  clumgus  tlierc,  and  its  appearance  justified  tlie  title  it 
bore  of  Isola  Bell;'. — the  Indian  C'<ii/-iiij-noot.     'J'he  mansion  was  cruciform, 


THE    ]1UDS0N.  53 


and  delightfully  situated.  In  front  of  it  were  tastefully  ornamented 
grounds,  with  vistas  through  the  forest  trees,  that  afforded  glimpses  of 
charming  lake,  landscape,  and  distant  mountain  scenery.  Within  were 
evidences  of  elegant  refinement — a  valuable  library,  statuary,  bronzes, 
and  some  rare  paintings.  Among  other  sketches  was  a  picture  of  Hale 
Hall,  in  Lancashire,  England — the  ancestral  dwelling  of  Colonel  Ireland, 
who  is  a  lineal  descendant  of  Sir  John  de  Ireland,  a  Norman  baron  who 
accompanied  William  the  Conqueror  to  England,  was  at  the  battle  of 
Hastings,  and  received  from  the  monarch  a  large  domain,  upon  which  he 
built  a  castle.  On  the  site  of  that  castle.  Hale  Hall  was  erected  by  Sir 
Gilbert  Ireland,  who  was  a  member  of  parliament,  and  lord-lieutenant  of 
his  county.     Hale  Hall  remains  in  possession  of  the  family. 

We  were  conveyed  to  Isola  Bella  in  a  skiff,  rowed  by  two  watermen, 
in  the  face  of  a  stiff  breeze  that  ruffled  the  lake,  and  it  was  almost  sunset 
when  we  returned  to  the  village  of  Scarron  Lake.  It  was  Saturday 
evening,  and  we  remained  at  the  village  until  Jlonday  morning,  and  then 
rode  down  the  pleasant  valley  to  Warrensburg,  near  the  junction  of  the 
Scarron  and  the  west  branch  of  the  Hudson,  a  distance  of  almost  thirfy 
miles.  It  was  a  very  delightful  ride,  notwithstanding  we  were  menaced 
by  a  storm.  Our  road  lay  first  along  the  cultivated  western  margin  of 
the  lake,  and  thence  througli  a  rolling  valley,  from  which  we  caught 
occasional  glimpses  of  the  river,  sometimes  near  and  sometimes  distant. 
The  journey  occupied  a  greater  portion  of  the  day.  We  passed  two 
quiet  villages,  named  respectively  Pottersville  and  Chester.  The  latter, 
the  larger  of  the  two,  is  at  the  outlet  of  Loon  and  Friendship  Lakes — 
good  fishing  places,  a  few  miles  distant.  Both  villages  are  points  upon 
the  State  road,  from  which  sportsmen  depart  for  the  adjacent  woods  and 
waters.  An  hour's  ride  from  cither  place  will  put  them  within  the 
borders  of  the  great  wilderness,  and  beyond  the  sounds  of  the  settlements. 

Warrensburg  is  situated  partly  upon  a  high  plain  and  partly  upon  a 
slope  that  stoops  to  a  bend  of  the  Scarron,  about  two  miles  above  its 
confluence  with  the  west  branch  of  the  Hudson.  It  was  a  village  of 
about  seven  liundred  inhabitants,  in  tlie  midst  of  rugged  mountain 
scenery,  the  hills  abounding  with  iron  ore.  As  we  approached  it  we  came 
to  a  wide  plain,  over  which  lay — in  greater  perfection  than  any  we  had 


54 


THE   HUDSOK. 


yot  seen — stump  fences,  which  are  peculiar  to  the  Upper  Hudson  country. 
They  arc  composed  of  the  stumps  of  hirgo  pine-trees,  clruwn  from  the  soil 
b}-  machines  made  for  the  purpose,  and  they  are  so  disposed  in  rows,  their 
roots  interlocking,  as  to  form  an  effectual  barrier  to  the  passage  of  any 
animal  on  whose  account  fences  arc  made.  The  stumps  are  full  of  sap 
(turpentine),  and  wc  were  assured,  with  all  the  confidence  of  experience, 
that  those  fences  would  last  a  thousand  years,  the  turpentine  preserving 
the  woody  fibre.  One  of  the  stump-machines  stood  in  a  field  near  tlie 
road.  It  was  a  simple  derrick,  with  a  large  wooden  screw  hanging  from 
the  apex,  where  its  heavy  matrix  Avas  fastened.  In  the  lower  end  of  the 
screw  was  a  large  iron  bolt,  and  at  the  upper  end,  or  head,  a  strong  lever 


STUJll'-.MAlUlXE. 


was  fastened.  The  derrick  is  placed  over  a  stumj),  and  heavy  chains  are 
wound  round  and  under  the  stump  and  over  the  iron  bolt  in  the  screw. 
A  horse  attached  to  the  lever  works  the  screw  in  such  a  manner  as  to 
draw  the  t^tump  and  its  roots  clean  from  the  ground.  The  stump  fences 
formed  tpiite  a  picturesi^ue  feature  in  the  landscape,  and  at  a  distance 
lune  the  appearance  of  masses  of  deer  horns. 

It  was  toward  CA-ening  when  we  arrived  at  Warrensburg,  but  before 
sunset  we  had  strolled  over  the  most  interesting  portions  of  the  village, 
along  the  river  and  its  immediate  vicinity.  Here,  as  elsewhere,  tlie  pre- 
vailing drought  had  diminished  the  streams,  and  the  Scarron,  usually  a 


THE    HUDSON. 


55 


wild,  rushing  river,  from  the  viUage  to  its  confluence  with  the  Hudson 
proper,  was  a  comparatively  gentle  creet,  with  many  of  the  rocks  in  its 
bed  quite  bare,  and  timber  lodged  among  tlicm.  The  buildings  of  a  largo 
manufactory  of  leather  skirted  one  side  of  the  rapids,  and  at  their  head 
was  a  large  clam  and  some  mills.  That  region  abounded  with  establish- , 
ments  for  making  leather,  the  homloek-tree,  whose  bark  is  used  for 
tanning,  being  very  abundant  upon  the  mountains. 

We  passed  the  night  at  "Warrensburg,  and  early  in  the  morning  rode  to 
the  confluence  of  the  Scarrou  and  Hudson  rivers,  in  a  charming  little 


^■1EW   AT   WAIJKENSmr.ti. 


valley  which  fornud  the  Indian  pass  of  Teo-ho-Kcii  in  the  olden  time, 
between  the  Thunder's  jS'cst  and  othfrr  high  hills.  The  point  where  the 
waters  met  was  a  lovely  spot,  shaded  by  elms  and  other  spreading  trees, 
and  forming  a  picture  of  beauty  and  rejwse  in  strong  contrast  with  the 
rugged  hills  around.  On  the  north  side  of  the  valley  rises  the  Thunder's 
Nest  (which  appears  in  our  little  sketch),  a  lofty  pile  of  rocks  full  eight 
hundred  feet  in  height ;  and  from  the  great  bridge,  three  hundred  feet 
long,  which  spanned  the  Hudson  just  below  the  confluence,  there  was  a 
view  of  a  fine  amphitheatre  of  hills. 


56 


THE    HUDSON, 


From  Taliawiis,  at  the  foot  of  Sandford  Lake,  to  the  confluence  with 
the  ScaiTon,  at  WaiTcnsbiirg,  a  distance  of  about  fifty  miles  by  its  course, 
the  Hudson  flows  most  of  the  way  tlirough  an  almost  unbroken  wilderness. 
Tlirongh  that  region  an  immense  amount  of  timber  is  annually  cast  into 
the  stream,  to  be  gatliered  by  the  owners  at  the  great  boom  near  Glen's 
Falls.  From  Warrc  nsbnrg  to  Luzerne,  at  Jesup's  Little  Falls,  the  river 
is  equally  uninteresting,  and  these  two  sections  we  omitted  in  our  explo- 
rations, because  they  promised  very  small  returns  for  the  time  and  labour 
to  be  spent  in  visiting  tliem.     .So  at  Warrensburg  we  left  the  river  again, 


<"U.\FI.ri.NCJ-;   OF   TlIK   lICliSON  AM)  SCARRO.V. 


and  took  a  somewhat  circuitous  route  to  Luzerne,  that  wc  might  ti'avel  a 
good  road.  That  route,  by  far  the  most  interesting  for  the  tourist,  leads 
by  the  way  of  Caldwell,  at  the  head  of  Lake  George,  through  a  moun- 
tainous and  very  picturesque  country,  sparsely  dotted  with  neat  farmhouses 
in  tlie  intervals  between  the  grand  old  hills.  The  road  is  plunked,  and 
occasionally  a  fountain  by  the  wayside  sends  out  its  clear  stream  from 
rocks,  or  a  mossy  bank,  into  a  rude  reservoir,  such  as  is  seen  delineated 


THE   HUDSON. 


iu  the  picture  at  tlic  head  of  Chapter  II.  "^'hilo  watering  our  horses  at 
one  of  these,  the  ring  of  merry  hiughter  came  up  through  the  little  Tallcy 
near,  and  a  few  moments  afterward  we  met  a  group  of  young  people 
enjoying  the  pleasures  of  a  pic-nic. 

At  noon  we  reined  up  in  front  of  the  Fort  "William  Henry  Hotel,  at 
the  head  of  Lake  George,  where  we  dined,  and  then  departed  through  the 
forest  for  Luzerne.  That  immense  caravansera  for  the  entertainment  of 
summer  visitors  stands  upon  classic  ground.  It  is  upon  the  site  of  old 
Fort  "William  Henry,  erected  by  General  "William  Johnson  in  the  autumn 


FORT   WILLIAM   IIKNEV  HOTEL. 


of  1755,  and  named  in  honour  of  two  of  the  Koyal  Family  of  England. 
At  the  same  time  the  general  changed  the  name  of  tlio  lake  from  that  of 
the  Holy  Sacrament,  given  it  by  Father  Jogue,  a  French  priest,  who 
reached  the  head  of  it  on  Corpus  Christi  day,  to  George — not  in  simple 
honour  to  his  Majesty,  then  reigning  monarch  of  England,  but,  as  the 
general  said,  "to  assert  his  undoubted  dominion  here."  The  Indians 
called  it,  Can-ai-de-ri-oit,  or  Tale  of  the  Lake,  it  appearing  as  such 
appendage  to  Lake  Champlain. 


58  THE   HUDSON. 


From  the  broad  colonnade  of  the  hotel  the  eye  takes  in  the  lake  and  its 
shores  to  the  Narrows,  about  fifteen  miles,  and  includes  a  theatre  of  great 
historic  interest.  Over  those  waters  came  the  Hurons  to  fight  the 
Mohawks,  and  during  the  Seven  Years'  war,  when  French  dominion  in 
America  was  crushed  by  the  united  powers  of  England  and  her  American 
colonies,  those  hills  often  echoed  the  voice  of  the  trumpet,  the  beat  of  the 
drum,  the  roar  of  cannon,  the  crack  of  musketry,  the  savage  yell,  and  the 
shout  of  victoiy.  At  the  head  of  the  lake,  British  and  Gallic  warriors 
fought  desperately,  early  in  September,  1755;  and  history  has  recorded 
the  results  of  many  battle-fields  in  that  vicinity  during  the  last  century, 
before  and  after  the  colonists  and  the  mother-country  came  to  blows,  after 
a  long  and  bitter  quarrel.  At  the  head  of  Lake  George,  where  another 
fort  had  been  erected  near  the  ruins  of  William  Henry,  the  republicans, 
in  the  old  "War  for  Independence,  had  a  military  depot ;  and  until  the 
surrender  of  Sir  Jolin  Eurgoyne,  at  Saratoga,  on  the  Hudson,  in  1777, 
tliat  lake  was  a  minor  theatre  of  war,  where  the  respective  adherents  of 
the  "Continental"  and  "Ministerial"  parties  came  into  frequent 
collisions.  Since  then  a  profound  peace  lias  reigned  over  all  that  region, 
and  at  the  Fort  William  Henry  House  and  its  neighbours  are  gathered 
every  summer  the  wise  and  the  wealthy,  the  noble,  gay,  and  beautiful  of 
many  lands,  seeking  and  finding  hoaltli  in  recreation. 


CHAPTEll    IV. 


E  sUirtid  for  Liizcnic  aftrv  an  earlj'  diiiiKr, 
crossing  on  our  ■n-ay  the  "  French  fieltl," 
wliercon  Dicskau  disposed  his  troops  for 
action.  "\Ye  then  entered  the  woods,  and 
our  route  of  eleven  miles  lay  through  a 
highly  picturesque  country,  partially  culti- 
vated, among  the  hills,  and  following  the 
old  Indian  war-path  from  the  Sacandaga  to 
Lake  George.  As  wc  approached  Luzerne, 
tlic  country  spread  into  a  high  plain,  as  at 
^Varrensburg,  on  the  southern  margin  of 
wliich,  overlooked  by  lofty  hills,  lies  Luzeme 
Lake.  Wc  passed  it  on  our  left,  and  then 
went  down  quite  a  steep  and  winding  way  into  the  village,  on  the  bank 
of  the  Hudson,  and  found  an  excellent  home  at  Ilockwell's  spacious  inn. 
"Wc  have  seldom  seen  a  village  more  picturesquely  situated  than  this.  It 
is  about  seventy  miles  from  the  Adirondack  village,  and  on  the  borders  of 
the  great  wilderness,  where  game  and  fish  abound,  and  for  a  quiet  place 
of  summer  resort,  can  hardly  be  surpassed.  It  lies  at  the  foot  of  a  high 
bluff,  down  which  flows  in  cascades  the  outlet  of  Luzerne  Lake,  and  leaps 
into  the  Hudson,  which  here  makes  a  magnificent  sweep  before  rushing, 
in  naiTow  channel  and  foaming  rapids  between  high  rocky  banks,  to 
receive  the  c(2ually  turbulent  waters  of  the  Sacandaga,  just  below.  That 
place  the  Indians  called  Tio-sa-ron-da,  the  "  Meeting  of  the  "Waters." 
Twenty  years  ago,  there  were  several  mills  at  the  head  of  these  falls  :  a 
flood  swept  the7n  away,  and  they  have  never  been  rebuilt. 

The  rapids  at  Luzerne,  which  form  a  fall  of  about  eighteen  feet,  bear 
the  name  of  Jesup's  Little  Falls,  to  distinguish  them  from  Jesup's  Great 


GO 


THE    HUDSON. 


F;^ll^;,  five  miles  below,  both  being  iueluded  in  putcnts  grai,ited  to  Ebenezer 
Jesiip,  who,  with  a  family  of  Faiixliilds,  settled  there  before  the  Revolu- 
tion, when  Luzerne  was  called  "\Tcsttield.  These  settlers  espoused  the 
cause  of  the  king,  and  because  of  their  depredations  upon  their  Whig 
neiglibours,  became  very  obnoxious.  They  held  intercourse  with  the 
loyal  Scotch  Highlanders,  who  were  under  the  influence  of  the  Johnsons 
and  other  royalists  in  the  Mohawk  valley,  and  acted  as  spies  and 
inforaiants  for  the  enemies  of  republicanism.     In  the  summer  of  1777, 


FALLS  AT  LlIZEIiKE. 

wliile  Ijitrgoyne  was  making  his  way  toward  Albany,  Celonel  St„  Leger 
penetrated  the  upper  Mohawk  valley,  and  laid  siege  to  Fort  Schuyler. 
Oil  one  occasion  he  sent  Indian  messengers  to  the  Fairchilds,  who  took 
the  old  trail  through  the  Sacandaga  valley,  by  way  of  the  Fish  House, 
owned  by  Sir  'William  Johnson.  "When  they  approached  Tio-m-ron-da 
(Luzerne),  they  were  discovered  and  pursued  by  a  party  of  republicans, 
and  one  of  them,  close  pressed,  leaped  the  Hudson,  at  the  foot  of  Jesup's 
Little  Falls,  the  high  wooded  banks  then  approaching  within  twenty-iive 
feet  of  each  other.  He  escaped,  took  the  trail  to  Lake  George,  and  pushed 
on  to Skenesborough (now  Whitehall),  where  he  found  Biirgoyue.  Soon  after 


THE    HUDSON. 


61 


iliis  a  small  party  of  republican  troops,  sent  by  General  Gates,  not  succeed- 
ing in  capturing  these  royalists  at  "Wcstficld,  laid  Tvaste  tbe  settlement. 

Luzerne  Lake,  lying  many  feet  above  the  village,  is  a  beautiful  little 
sheet  of  water,  with,  a  single  small  island  upon  its  bosom.  It  is  the 
larger  of  a  series  of  four  lakes,  extending  back  to  within  five  miles  of 
Lake  George.  It  abounds  with  fine  fish,  the  largest  and  most  delicious 
being  the  Masque  alonge,  a  species  of  pike  or  pickerel,  which  is  also  found 
in  the  Upper  Hudson,  and  all  over  northern  New  York.     One  was  caught 


'I'A  ..^--  .C^^^  i._^^^. 


MAbi/Lli   ALUM.1:.. 

iu  the  lake,  and  brought  to  liockwell's,  on  the  morning  of  our  departure, 
which  weighed  between  five  and  six  i^ounds."''' 

On  the  northern  shore  of  Luzerne  Lake,  where  tlie  villas  of  Benjamin 
C.  Butler  and  J.  Leati,  Esqs.  (seen  in  the  picture),  stood,  was  the  ancient 
gathering  place  of  the  Indians  in  council.  Here  was  the  fork  of  the  great 
Sacandaga  and  Oneida  trail,  one  branch  extending  to  Lake  George  and 
the  northern  country,  and  the  other  to  Fort  Edward  and  the  more 
southern  country.  All  around  the  lake  and  village  are  ranges  of  loftj- 
liills,  filled  with  iron  ore.  On  the  west  is  the  Kayaderosseros  range, 
extending  from  Ballston  to  the   Adlrondacks,   and  on   the   east  of  the 


*  The  Masque  aJotiQC  [Eior  estor)  derived  its  name  from  tixe  peculiar  formation  of  its  mouth  and 
head.  The  French  called  it  Masque  alonge,  or  Long-face.  It  is  the  lar^rcst  of  the  pickerel  species. 
.Some  have  been  caught  among  tlie  Thousand  Islands  in  the  St.  Lawrence,  in  the  vicinity  of  Alexandria 
Bay,  on  its  southern  shore,  weigliing  fifty  pounds,  and  measm-iug  five  feet  in  length.  It  is  the  most 
voracious  of  fresh-water  fish. 


62 


THE   HUDSON. 


Luzerne  range,  stretching  Irom  Saratoga  Springs  to  the  western  sliores  of 
Lake  George.     Four  miles  north  of  the  village  is  a  hemisi^lierical  nioun- 


LVZERNE  LAKK. 


tain,  eight  hundred  feet  in  lieiglit,  rocky  and  hald,  which  the  Indians 
called  Sc-noii-f/c-iraJi,  the  Great  Upturned  Pot. 


COM-'LUEKCE   OF  lUi:   ULUSOX   AAD  fcALAMjAl^A. 


I 


The  Saoandaga  is  the  largest  tributary  of  the  Mohawk,  and  comes  down 
scvcnty-firc  miles  from  the  north-west,  out  of  lakes  and  ponds  in  the 


THE    HUDSON. 


63 


■wilderness  of  Hamilton  County.  Its  confluence  with  its  receptacle  is  at 
the  head  of  a  very  beautiful  valley,  that  terminates  at  Luzerne.  It 
comes  s'n'ecping  around  the  bases  of  high  hills  with  a  rapid  current,  and 
rushes  swiftly  into  the  Hudson,  where  the  latter  has  become  deep  and 
sluggish  after  its  commotion  at  the  falls  above.  Down  that  valley  we 
rode,  with  the  river  in  view  all  the  way  to  the  village  of  Corinth,  at  the 
head  of  the  long  rapids  above  Jesup's  Great  Falls,  the  Kali-che-hon-cooh  of 
the  Indians.  These  were  formerly  known  as  the  Hadlcy  Fulls.  They 
were  afterward  called  Palmer's  Falls,  the  land  on  each  side  of  the  river 


KAH-CHE-nON-COOK,  OR  JESVP'S  GREAT  F.U.I,S. 

being  in  possession  of  Beriah  Palmer  and  others,  who  there  constructed 
extensive  works  for  manufacturing  piu'poses.  The  water-power  there, 
even  at  the  very  low  stage  of  the  river,  as  when  we  visited  it,  has  been 
estimated  to  bo  equal  to  fifteen  thousand  horse-power.  They  had  laid 
out  a  village,  with  a  public  square  and  fountain,  and  were  preparing  for 
industrial  operations  far  greater  than  at  any  point  so  far  up  the  Hudson. 
It  is  only  sixteen  miles  north  of  Saratoga  Springs. 

We  followed  a  path  down  the  margin  of  the  roaring  stream   some 
distance,  and,  returning,  took  a  rough  road  which  led  to  the  foot  of  the 


64 


THE    HUDSON. 


Great  Fall.  From  Jcsup's  landing  to  this  jioint,  a  distance  of  more  than 
a  mile,  tlic  river  descends  ahout  one  lumdred  and  twenty  feet,  in  some 
places  rushing  wildly  through  rocky  gorges  from  eighty  to  one  hundred 
feet  in  depth.  The  perpendicular  fall  is  seyeuty-fivo  feet.  "We  did  not 
SCO  it  in  its  grandeur,  the  river  was  so  low.  From  its  course  back, 
some  distance,  the  stream  was  choked  with  thousands  of  logs  that  had 
come  down  from  the  wilderness  and  lodged  there.  They  lay  in  a 
mass,  in  every  conceivable  position,  to  the  depth  of  many  feet,  and 
so  filled  the  river  as  to  form  a  safe,  though  rough  bridge,  for  us  to 
cross.  Between  this  point  and  Glen's  Falls,  thirteen  miles  distant 
by  the  nearest  road,  the  Hudson  makes  a  grand  sweep  among  lofty 
and  rugged  hills  of  the  Luzerne  range,  and  flows  into  a  sandy  plain  a 
few  miles  above  the  latter  village.  We  did  not  follow  its  course,  but 
took  that  nearest  road,  for  the  day  was  waning.  Over  mountains  and 
through  valleys,  catching  glimpses  of  the  river  here  and  there,  we 
travelled  that  bright  afternoon  in  early  autumn,  our  eyes  resting  only 
\ipon  near  objects  most  of  the  time,  Tuitil  we  reached  the  summit  of  a 
lotty  hill,  nine  miles  from  Glen's  Falls.  There  a  revelation  of  bea\ity, 
not  easily  described,  burst  upon  the  vision.  Looking  over  and  beyond 
the  minor  hills  through  an  opening  in  the  Luzerne  range,  we  saw  the 
Green  Mountains  of  Ycrmont  in  the  far  distance,  bathed  in  shadowy 
splendour,  and  all  the  intervening  country,  with  its  villages  and  farm- 
houses, lay  before  us.  The  spires  and  white  houses  of  Glen's  Falls 
appeared  so  near,  that  we  anticipated  a  speedy  end  to  our  day's  journey. 
That  vision  was  enjoyed  but  for  a  few  moments,  for  we  were  soon  again 
among  the  tangled  hills.  But  another  appeared  to  charm  us.  "We  had 
just  commenced  the  descent  of  a  mountain,  along  whose  brow  lies  the 
dividing  line  between  the  towns  of  Luzerne  and  Queensbury,  when  a 
sudden  turn  in  the  road  revealed  a  deep,  narrow  valley  far  below  us,  with 
the  Hudson  sweeping  through  it  with  rapid  current.  The  sun's  last  rays 
had  left  that  valley,  and  the  shadows  were  deepening  along  the  waters  as 
we  descended  to  their  margin.  Twilight  was  drawing  its  delicate  veil 
over  the  face  of  nature  when  we  reached  the  plain  just  mentioned,  and 
the  night  had  closed  in  when  we  arrived  at  the  village  of  Glen's  Falls. 
"We  had  hoped  to  reach  there  in  time  to  visit  the  State  Dam  and  the 


I 


THE    HUDSON. 


65 


Great  Boom,  which  span  the  Hudson  at  separate  points,  a  few  miles 
ahove  the  falls,  but  wci'e  compelled  to  forego  that  pleasure  until  morning. 
We  were  now  fairly  out  of  the  wilderness  in  which  the  Hudson  rises, 
and  through  which  it  flows  for  a  hundred  miles ;  and  here  our  little  party 
was  broken  by  the  dej)arture  of  Mr.  Buckingham  for  home.  Mrs.  Lossing 
and  myself  lingered  at  Glen's  Falls  and  at  Fort  Edward,  five  mUes  below, 
a  day  or  two  longer,  for  the  purpose  of  visiting  objects  of  interest  in  their 
vicinity,  a  description  of  which  will  be  given  as  we  proceed  with  our 


THK    lUrsuN"    NKAR    THi:   wrKENSIJURV  LIXE. 


notes.     A  brief  notice  of  the  State  Dam  and  Great  Boom,  just  mentioned, 
seems  necessary. 

The  dam  was  about  two  and  a-half  mUes  above  Glen's  Falls.  It  had 
been  constructed  about  fifteen  years  before,  to  furnish  water  for  the  feeder 
of  the  canal  which  connects  the  Hudson  river  and  Lake  Champlaiu.  It 
was  sixteen  hundred  feet  in  lengtli ;  and  the  mills  near  it  Lave  attracted 
a  population  sufficient  to  constitute  (juite  a  village,  named  State  Dam. 
About  two  mUes  above  this  dyke  was  the  Great  Boom,  thrown  across  the 
river  for  the  purpose  of  catching  all  the  logs  that  come  floating  from 
above.    It  was  made  of  heavy,  hewn  timbers,  four  of  them  bolted  together 


66 


THE   HUDSON. 


riift-wisu.  The  ends  of  the  groups  were  connected  by  cluiins,  whicli 
worked  over  friction  rollers,  to  allow  the  boom  to  accommodate  itself  to 
the  motion  of  tlie  water.  Each  end  of  the  boom  was  secured  to  a  heavy 
abutment  by  chains  ;  and  above  it  were  strong  triangular  structures  to 
break  the  ice,  to  serve  as  anchors  for  the  boom,  and  to  operate  as  shields 
to  prevent  the  logs  striking  the  boom  witli  the  full  speed  of  the  current. 
At  times,  immense  numbers  of  logs  were  collected  above  this  boom,  filling 
the  river  for  two  or  three  miles.  In  tlie  spring  of  1859,  at  least  half  a 
million  of  logs  were  collected  there,  ready  to  be  taken  into  small  side- 


IHE  t  Bi-il    UOUM 


booms,  assorted  by  the  owners  according  to  their  pri\-ate  murks,  and  sent 
down  to  Glen's  Falls,  Sandy  Hill,  or  Fort  Edward,  to  be  sawed  into 
boards  at  the  former  places,  or  made  into  rafts  at  the  latter,  for  a  voyage 
down  the  river.  Heavy  rains  and  melting  snows  filled  the  river  to  over- 
flowing. The  great  boom  snapped  asunder,  and  the  half  million  of  logs 
went  rushing  down  the  stream,  defying  every  barrier.  The  country 
below  was  flooded  by  the  swollen  river ;  and  we  saw  thousands  of  the 
logs  scattered  over  the  valley  of  the  Hudson  from  Fort  Edward  to  Troy, 
a  distance  of  about  forty  miles. 


THE    HUDSON.  67 


We  have  taken  leave  of  the  wilderness.  Henceforth,  our  path  -will  be 
vrhere  the  Hudson  flows  through  cultivated  plains,  along  the  margins  of 
gentle  slopes,  of  rocky  headlands,  and  of  lofty  hills ;  by  the  cottages  of  the 
humble,  and  the  mansions  of  the  wealthy ;  by  pleasant  hamlets,  through 
thriving  villages,  ambitious  cities,  and  the  marts  of  trade  and  commerce. 

Unlike  the  rivers  of  the  elder  world,  famous  in  the  history  of  men,  the 
Hudson  presents  no  grey  and  crumbling  monuments  of  the  ruder  civilisa- 
tions of  the  past,  or  even  of  the  barbaric  life  so  recently  dwelling  upon  its 
borders.  It  can  boast  of  no  rude  tower  or  mouldering  wall,  clustered 
with  historical  associations  that  have  been  gathering  around  them  for 
centuries.  It  has  no  fine  old  castles,  in  glory  or  in  ruins,  with  visions  of 
romance  pictured  in  their  dim  shadows  ;  no  splendid  abbeys  or  cathedrals, 
in  grandeur  or  decay,  from  which  emanate  an  aura  of  religious  memories. 
'Nor  can  it  boast  of  mansions  or  ancestral  halls  wherein  a  line  of  heroes 
have  been  born,  or  illustrious  families  have  lived  and  died,  generation 
after  generation.  Upon  its  banks  not  a  vestige  of  feudal  power  may  be 
seen,  because  no  citadel  of  great  wrongs  ever  rested  there.  The  dead 
Past  has  left  scarcely  a  record  upon  its  shores.  It  is  full  of  the  living 
Present,  illustrating  by  its  general  aspect  the  free  thouglit  and  free  action 
which  are  giving  strength  and  solidity  to  the  young  and  vigorous  nation 
within  wliose  bosom  its  bright  waters  flow. 

Yet  the  Hudson  is  not  without  a  history — a  history  brilliant  in  some 
respects,  and  in  all  interesting,  not  only  to  the  American,  but  to  the  whole 
civilised  world.  From  the  spot  where  we  now  stand — the  turbulent 
Glen's  Falls — to  the  sea,  the  banks  of  the  beautiful  river  have  voices 
innumerable  for  the  ear  of  the  patient  listener  ;  telling  of  joy  and  woe,  of 
love  and  beauty,  of  noble  heroism,  and  more  noble  fortitude,  of  glory,  and 
high  renown,  worthy  of  the  sweetest  cadences  of  the  minstrel,  the  glowing 
numbers  of  the  poet,  the  deepest  investigations  of  the  philosopher,  and  the 
gravest  records  of  the  historian.     Let  us  listen  to  those  voices. 

Glen's  Falls  consist  of  a  series  of  rapids  and  cascades,  along  a  descent  of 
about  eighty  I'eet,  the  water  flowing  over  ragged  masses  of  black  marble, 
which  here  form  the  bed  and  banks  of  the  river.  Ha-\^k-eye,  in  Cooper's 
"Last  of  the  Mohicans,"  has  given  an  admirable  description  of  these  falls, 
as  they  appeared  before  the  works  of  man  changed  their  features.     He  is 


68  THE   HUDSON. 


standing  in  a  cavern,  or  irregular  arched  way,  in  the  rock  helow  the 
bridge,*  in  the  time  of  the  old  French  war,  -with  Uncas  and  Major  Hey- 
wood,  and  Cora  and  Alice  Munro,  the  daughters  of  the  commandant  at 
Fort  William  Henry,  on  Lake  George,  when  Montcalm  with  his  motley 
horde  of  French  and  Indians  was  approaching.  "Ay,"  he  said,  "there 
are  the  falls  on  two  sides  of  us,  and  the  river  above  and  below.  If  yon 
had  daylight,  it  would  be  worth  the  trouble  to  step  up  on  the  height  of 
this  rock,  and  look  at  the  perversity  of  the  water.  It  falls  by  no  rule  at 
all :  sometimes  it  leaps,  sometimes  it  tumbles ;  there  it  skips — here  it 
shoots ;  in  one  place  'tis  as  white  as  snow,  and  in  another  'tis  as  green  as 
grass ;  hereabouts,  it  pitches  into  deep  hollows,  that  rumble  and  quake 
the  'arth,  and  thereaway  it  ripples  and  sings  like  a  brook,  fashioning 
whirlpools  and  gullies  in  the  old  stone,  as  if  'twere  no  harder  than  trodden 
clay.  The  whole  design  of  the  river  seems  disconcerted.  First,  it  runs 
smoothly,  as  if  meaning  to  go  down  the  descent  as  things  were  ordered  ; 
then  it  angles  about  and  faces  the  shores  ;  nor  are  there  places  wanting 
where  it  looks  backward,  as  if  unwilling  to  leave  the  wilderness  to  mingle 
with  the  salt !  " 

The  falls  had  few  of  these  features  wlicn  we  visited  them.  The  volume 
of  water  was  so  small  that  the  stream  was  almost  hidden  in  the  deep 
channels  in  the  rook  worn  by  the  current  during  the  lapse  of  centuries. 
No  picture  could  thou  be  made  to  give  an  adequate  idea  of  the  cascades 
when  the  river  is  full,  and  I  contented  myself  with  making  a  sketch  of 
the  scene  below  the  bridge,  at  the  foot  of  the  falls,  from  the  water-side 
entrance  to  the  cavern  alluded  to.  A  fine  sepia  drawing,  by  the  late 
Mr.  Bartlett,  which  I  found  subsequently  among  some  original  sketches 
in  my  possession,  supplies  the  omission.  The  engraving  from  it  gives  a 
perfect  idea  of  the  appearance  of  the  falls  when  the  river  is  at  its  usual 
height. 

The  Indians  gave  this  place  the  significant  name  of  Che-jmn-tuc — 
meaning  a  difficult  place  to  get  around.  The  white  man  first  called  the 
cascades  Wing's  Falls,  in  honour  of  Abraham  Wing,  who,  with  others 


*  A  view  of  this  cavern  is  seen  at  the  head  of  this  chniiter.    Tlie  spectator  is  t-iipposed  to  be  wiiliin 
it,  and  loolting  out  npon  tlie  river  and  tlie  opposite  banlv. 


^^Ofit 


THE   HUDSON. 


69 


from  Duchess  County,  New  York,  settled  there  under  a  grant  from  the 
Crown,  about  the  middle  of  the  last  century.  Many  years  afterwards, 
when  Wing  was  dead,  and  his  son  was  in  possession  of  the  falls  and  the 
adjacent  lands,  a  convivial  party  assembled  at  table  in  the  tavern  there, 
which  formed  the  germ  of  the  present  village  of  nearly  four  thousand 
inhabitants.  Among  them  was  Mr.  Wing ;  also  .lohn  Glen,  a  man  of 
fortune,  who  lived  on  the  south  side  nf  the  river.  The  wine  circulated 
freely,  and  it  ruled  the  wit  of  the  hour.     Fnder  its  influence,   AVing 


GLEN'S  FAILS. 


agreed  to  transfer  to  Glen  the  right  of  uamo  to  the  falls,  on  condition 
that  the  latter  should  pay  for  the  supper  of  the  company.  Glen  imme- 
diately posted  handbills  along  the  bridle-path  from  the  "Wing's  to  Schenec- 
tada  and  Albany,  announcing  the  change  in  the  name  of  the  falls ;  and 
ever  since  they  have  been  known  as  Glen's  Falls.  For  a  "mess  of 
pottage  "  the  young  man  sold  his  family  birthright  to  immortality. 

Glen's  Falls  village  is  beautifully  situated  upon  a  plain  on  the  north 
side  of  the  river,  and  occupies  a  conspicuous  place  in  the  trade  and  travel 


70 


THE    HUDSON. 


of  that  section  of  the  State.*  The  -n'atcr-power  there  is  very  great,  and 
is  used  extensively  for  flouring  and  lumber  mills.  The  surplus  water 
supplies  a  navigable  feeder  to  the  Champlain  Canal,  that  connects  Lake 
Champlain  with  the  Hudson.  There  are  also  several  mills  for  slabbing 
the  fine  black  marble  of  that  locality  for  the  construction  of  chimney- 
pieces,  and  for  other  uses.  These  various  mills  mar  the  natural  beauty  of 
the  scene,  but  their  uncouth  and  irregular  forms  give  picturesqueness  to 
the  view.  The  bridge  crosses  just  at  the  foot  of  the  falls.  It  rests  upon 
abutments  of  strong  masonry  at  each  end,  and  a  pier  in  the  middle,  whifli 


HELOW  THE  BRID(in  AT   GLKX'S  FALLS. 

is  seated  upon  the  cavcrned  rock,  just  mentioned,  which  was  once  in  the 
bed  of  the  stream.  The  channel  on  the  southern  side  has  been  closed  by 
an  abutment,  and  one  of  the  chambers  of  the  cavern,  made  memorable  by 
Cooper,  is  completely  shut.  When  we  were  there,  huge  logs  nearly  filled 
the  upper  entrance  to  it.  Below  the  bridge  the  shores  are  black  marble, 
beautifully  stratified,  perpendicular,  and,  in  some  places,  seventy  feet  in 


*  Not  long  after  our  visit  here  menticiietl,  a  rci'eater  pirlion  of  the  village  was  destroyed  by  fire,  but 
it  was  soon  rebuilt. 


s9M 


THE    HUDSON.  71 


heiglit.  Between  tliese  walls  the  water  runs  with  a  swift  current  for 
nearly  a  mile,  and  finally,  at  Sandy  Hill,  three  miles  below,  is  broken 
into  rapids. 

At  Sandy  Hill  the  Hudson  makes  a  magnificent  sweep,  in  a  curve, 
when  changing  its  course  from  an  easterly  to  a  southerly  direction ;  and  a 
little  below  that  village  it  is  broken  into  wild  cascades,  which  have  been 
named  Baker's  Falls.  Sandy  Hill,  like  the  borough  of  Glen's  Falls, 
stands  npon  a  high  plain,  and  is  a  very  beautiful  village,  of  about  thirteen 
hundred  inhabitants.  In  its  centre  is  a  shaded  green,  which  tradition 
points  to  as  the  sjiot  where  a  tragedy  was  enacted  more  than  a  century 
ago,  some  incidents  of  which  remind  us  of  the  romantic  but  truthful 
story  of  Captain  Smith  and  Pocahontas,  in  Virginia.  The  time  of  the 
tragedy  was  during  the  old  French  war,  and  the  chief  actor  was  a  young 
Albanian,  son  of  Sybrant  Quaokenboss,  one  of  the  sturdy  Dutch  burghers 
of  that  old  city.  The  young  man  was  betrothed  to  a  maiden  of  the  same 
city  ;  the  marriage  day  was  fixed,  and  preparations  for  the  nuptials  were 
nearly  completed,  when  he  was  impressed  into  the  military  service  as  a 
waggoner,  and  required  to  convey  a  load  of  provisions  from  Albany  to 
Fort  William  Henry,  at  the  head  of  Lake  George.  He  had  passed  Fort 
Edward  with  an  escort  of  sixteen  men,  under  Lieutenant  McGinnis,  of 
New  Hampshire,  and  was  making  his  way  through  the  gloomy  forest  at 
the  bend  of  the  Hudson,  when  they  were  attacked,  overpowered,  and  dis- 
armed by  a  party  of  French  Indians,  under  the  famous  partizan  JIarin. 
The  prisoners  were  taken  to  the  trunk  of  a  fallen  tree,  and  seated  upon  it 
in  a  row.  The  captors  then  started  toward  Fort  Edward,  leaving  the 
helpless  captives  strongly  bound  with  green  withes,  in  charge  of  two  or 
three  stalwart  warriors,  and  their  squaws,  or  wives.  In  the  com-se  of  an 
hour  the  party  returned.  Young  Quaokenboss  was  seated  at  one  end  of 
the  log,  and  Lieutenant  McGinnis  next  him.  The  savages  held  a  brief 
consultation,  and  then  one  of  them,  with  a  glittering  tomahawk,  went  to 
the  end  of  the  log  opposite  Quackenboss,  and  deliberately  sank  his  weapon 
in  the  brain  of  the  nearest  soldier.  He  fell  dead  upon  the  ground.  The 
second  shared  a  like  fate,  then  a  third,  and  so  on  until  all  were  slain  but 
McGinnis  and  Quaokenboss.  The  tomahawk  was  raised  to  cleave  the 
skull  of  the  former,  when  he  threw  himself  suddenly  backward  from  the 


THE   HUDSON. 


log,  and  atti'mptc'd  to  break  his  bonds.  lu  an  instant  u  dozen  tomahawks 
gleamed  over  his  head.  For  a  while  he  defended  himself  with  his  heels, 
lying  upon  his  back,  but  after  being  severely  hewn  with  their  hatchets, 
he  was  killed  by  a  blow.  Quackenboss  alone  remained  of  the  seventeen. 
As  the  fatal  steel  was  about  to  fall  upon  his  head,  the  arm  of  the  savage 
executioner  was  arrested  by  a  squaw,  who  exclaimed,  "You  shan't  kill 
him  !  He's  uo  fighter  !  He's  my  clog  J  "  He  was  spared  and  unbound, 
and,  staggering  under  a  pack  of  plunder  almost  too  heav}'  for  him  to 
sustain,  ho  was  marched  towards  Canada,  as  a  jirisoner,  the  Indians  bear- 
ing the  scalps  of  his  murdered  fellow  captives  as  trophies.  They  went 
down  Lake  Champlain  in  canoes,  and  at  the  first  Indian  village,  after 
reaching  its  foot,  he  was  compelled  to  run  the  gauntlet  between  rows  of 
savage  men  armed  with  clubs.  In  this  terrible  ordeal  he  was  severely 
wounded.  His  Indian  mistress  then  took  him  to  her  wigwam,  bound  up 
his  wounds,  and  carefully  nursed  him  until  he  was  fully  recovered.  The 
Governor  of  Canada  ransomed  him,  took  him  to  Montreal,  and  there  he 
was  employed  as  a  weaver.  He  obtained  the  governor's  permission  to 
write  to  his  parents  to  inform  them  of  his  fate.  The  letter  was  carried 
by  an  Indian  as  near  Port  Edward  as  he  dared  to  approach,  when  he 
[ilaoed  it  in  a  split  stick,  near  a  frequented  path  in  the  forest.  It  was 
found,  was  conveyed  to  Albany,  and  gave  great  joy  to  his  friends.  He 
remained  in  Canada  three  years,  when  he  returned,  married  his  affianced, 
and  died  in  "Washington  County,  in  the  year  1820,  at  the  age  of  eighty- 
three  years. 

Baker's  Palls  are  about  half-way  between  Sandy  Hill  and  Fort  Edward. 
The  river  is  about  four  hundred  feet  in  width,  and  the  entire  descent  of 
water,  iu  the  course  of  a  mile,  is  between  seventy  and  eighty  feet.  As 
at  Glen's  Falls,  the  course  of  the  river  is  made  irregular  by  huge  masses 
of  rocks,  and  it  rushes  in  foaming  cascades  to  the  chasm  below.  The 
best  view  is  from  the  foot  of  the  falls,  but  as  these  could  not  be  reached 
from  the  eastern  side,  on  which  the  paper-mills  stand,  without  much 
difficulty  and  some  danger,  I  sketched  a  less  imposing  view  from  the  high 
rooky  bank  on  their  eastern  margin.  This  affords  a  glimpse  of  the  mill- 
dam  above  the  great  fall,  the  village  of  Sandy  Hill  in  the  distance,  and 
the  piers  of  a  projected  railway  bridge  in  the  stream  at  the  great  bend. 


# 


THE    HUDSON. 


The  direction  of  the  railway  was  changed  after  these  piers  were  built  at 
a  heavy  expense,  and  they  remain  as  monuments  of  caprice,  or  of  some- 
thing still  less  commendable. 

Fort  Edward,  five  miles  below  Glen's  Falls,  by  the  river's  course,  was 
earliest  known  as  the  great  carrying  place,  it  being  the  point  of  overland 
departure  for  Lake  Champlain,  across  the  isthmus  of  five-and-twcnty 
miles.     It  lias  occupied  an  important  position  in  tlie  history  of  New  York 


B\ivl-K  a  lALLS. 


from   au  early  period,  and  at  the  time   we  are   considering  was  a  very 
thriving  village  of  about  two  thousand  inhabitants. 

In  the  year  1696,  the  unscrupulous  Governor  Fletcher  granted  to  one 
of  his  favourites,  whom  he  styled  "our  Loving  Subject,  the  Reverend 
Godfridius  Dellius,  Minister  of  the  GospeU.  att  our  city  of  Albany,"  a 
tract  of  land  lying  upon  the  cast  side  of  the  Hudson,  between  the 
northernmost  bounds  of  the  Saratoga  patent,  and  a  point  of  Lake  Cham- 
plain,  a  distance  of  seventy  miles,  with  an  average  width  of  twelve  miles. 
For  this  domain  the  worldly-minded  clergyman  was  required,  in  the  lan- 
guage of  the  grant,  to  pay,  "  on  the  feast-day  of  the  Annunciation  of  our 
blessed  Yirgin  Mary,  at  our  City  of  New  Yorke,  the  Annual  Eent  of  one 


74 


THE   HUDSON. 


Eaccoon  Skin,  ia  Lieu  and  Steade  of  all  other  Eents,  Services,  Dues, 
Dutyes,  and  Demands  ■whatsoever  for  the  said  Tract  of  Land,  and  Islands, 
and  Premises."  Governor  Bellomont  soon  succeeded  Fletcher,  and,  tlu'ough 
his  influence,  the  legislature  of  the  province  annulled  this  and  other 
similar  grants.  That  hody,  exercising  ecclesiastical  as  well  as  civil 
functions,  also  passed  a  resolution,  suspending  Dellius  from  the  ministry, 
for  "  deluding  the  Maquaas  (Mohawk)  Indians,  and  illegal  and  surreptitious 
obtaining  of  said  grant."  Dellius  denied  the  authority  of  the  legislature, 
and,  after  contesting  his  claim  for  a  while,  he  returned  to  Holland. 
There  he  transferred  his  title  to  the  domain  to  the  Ilev.  John  Lydius, 
who  became  Dellius's  successor  in  the  ministry  at  Albany,  in  1703. 
Lydius  soon  afterward  built  a  stone  trading-house  upon  the  site  of  Fort 
Edward.  Its  door  and  windows  were  strongly  barred,  and  near  the  roof 
the  walls  Were  pierced  for  musketry.  It  was  erected  upon  a  high  mound, 
and  palisaded,  as  a  defence  against  enemies. 

In  1709  an  expedition  was  prepared  for  the  conquest  of  Canada.  The 
commander  of  the  division  to  attack  Montreal  was  Francis  Nicholson, 
who  had  been  lieutenant-governor  of  the  province  of  New  York.  Under 
his  direction  a  military  road,  forty  miles  in  length,  was  opened  from 
Saratoga,  on  the  east  side  of  the  Hudson,  to  White  Hall,  on  Lake  Cham- 
plain.  Along  this  route  three  forts  were  erected.  The  upper  one  was 
named  Fort  Anne,  in  honour  of  the  Queen  of  England  ;  the  middle  one, 
of  which  Lydius's  house  formed  a  part,  was  called  Fort  Nicholson,  in 
honour  of  the  commander;  and  the  lower  one,  just 
below  the  mouth  of  the  Batten-Kill,  was  named 
Fort  Saratoga.  Almost  fifty  years  later,  when 
a  provincial  army,  under  General  Johnson,  of 
the  Mohawk  valley,  and  General  Lyman,  of 
Connecticut,  was  moving  forward  to  drive  the 
French  from  Lake  Champlain,  a  strong  irregular 
quadrangular  fort  was  erected  by  the  latter 
officer,  upon  the  site  of  Fort  Nicholson,  and  the  fortification  was  called 
Fort  Lyman,  in  his  honour.  It  was  not  fairly  completed  when  a  successful 
battle  was  fought  with  the  French  and  Indians  under  the  Baron  Dieskau, 
at  the  head  of  Lake  George,  the  honours  of  which  were  more  greatly 


GROX'ND-PLAN   OF  FOET 
EDWAEU. 


THE    HUDSON.  /O 


due  to  Lyman  than  Johnson.  But  the  latter  was  chief  commander.  His 
king,  as  we  have  seen,  gave  him  the  honours  of  knighthood  and  £4,000. 
With  a  mean  spirit  of  jealousy,  Johnson  not  only  omitted  to  mention  General 
Lyman  in  his  despatches,  hut  changed  the  name  of  the  fort  which  he  had 
erected,  to  Edward,  in  honour  of  one  of  the  royal  family  of  England. 

Fort  Edward  was  an  important  military  post  during  the  whole  of  the 
French  and  Indian  war, — that  Seven  Years'  "War  which  cost  England 
more  than  a  hundred  millions  of  pounds  sterling,  and  laid  one  of  the 
broadest  of  the  foundation-stones  of  her  immense  national  debt.  There, 
on  one  occasion,  Israel  Putnam,  a  bold  provincial  partizan,  and  afterward 
a  major-general  in  the  American  revolutionary  army,  performed  a  most 
daring  exploit.  It  was  winter,  and  the  whole  country  was  covered  with 
deep  snow.  Early  in  the  morning  of  a  mild  day,  one  of  the  rows  of 
wooden  barracks  in  the  fort  took  fire ;  the  flames  had  progressed  exten- 
sively before  they  were  discovered.  The  garrison  was  summoned  to  duty, 
but  all  efforts  to  subdue  the  fire  were  in  vain.  Putnam,  who  was 
stationed  upon  Roger's  Island,  opposite  the  fort,  crossed  the  river  upon 
the  ice  with  some  of  his  men,  to  assist  the  garrison.  The  fire  was  then 
rapidly  approaching  the  building  containing  the  powder-magazine.  Tlie 
danger  was  becoming  every  moment  more  imminent  and  frightful,  for  an 
explosion  of  the  powder  would  destroy  the  whole  fort  and  many  lives. 
The  water-gate  was  thrown  open,  and  soldiers  were  ordered  to  bring 
filled  buckets  from  the  river.  Putnam  mounted  to  the  roof  of  the 
building  next  to  the  magazine,  and,  by  means  of  a  ladder,  he  was  supplied 
with  water.  Still  the  fire  raged,  and  the  commandant  of  the  fuit, 
perceiving  Putnam's  danger,  ordered  him  down.  The  unflinching  major 
begged  permission  to  remain  a  little  longer.  It  was  granted,  and  he  did 
not  leave  liis  post  until  he  felt  the  roof  beneath  him  giving  way.  It  fell, 
and  only  a  few  feet  from  the  blazing  mass  was  the  magazine  building,  its 
sides  already  charred  with  the  heat.  Unmindful  of  the  peril,  Putnam 
placed  himself  between  the  fire  and  the  sleeping  power  in  the  menaced 
building,  which  a  spark  might  arouse  to  destructive  activity.  Under  a 
shower  of  cinders,  he  hurled  bucket-full  after  bucket-full  of  water  upon 
the  kindling  magazine,  with  ultimate  success.  The  flames  were  subdued, 
the  magazine  and  remainder   of  the  fort  were  saved,  and  the  intrepid 


THE    HUDSON. 


Putnam  retired  from  the  ten-ible  conflict  amidst  the  huzzas  of  his  com- 
panions in  aims.  He  was  severely  bounded  in  the  contest.  His  mittens 
■were  burned  from  his  hands,  and  his  h'gs,  thighs,  arms,  and  face  ■were 
dreadfully  blistered.    For  a  month  lie  ■was  a  suffering  invalid  in  tlie  hospital. 

Fort  Edward  ■was  strengthened  by  the  republicans,  and  properly 
garrisoned,  'wlien  the  revolution  broke  out  in  1775.  When  General 
Ikirgoyne,  ■with  his  invading  army  of  British  regulars,  hired  Germans, 
French,  Canadians,  and  Indians,  appeared  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Champlain, 
General  Philip  Schuyler  ■was  the  commander-in-chief  of  the  republican 
army  in  the  Northern  Department.  His  head-quarters  were  at  Fort  Anne, 
and  General  8t.  Clair  commanded  the  important  post  of  Ticonderoga.  In 
July,  Burgoyne  came  s^weeping  do^wn  the  lake  triumphantly.  St.  Clair 
fled  from  Ticonderoga,  and  his  army  ■was  scattered  and  sorely  smitten  in 
the  retreat.  Wlien  the  British  advanced  to  Skenesborough,  at  the  head 
of  the  lake,  Schuyler  retreated  to  Fort  Edward,  felling  trees  across  the 
old  military  road,  demolishing  the  causeways  over  the  great  Kingsbury 
marshes,  and  destroying  the  bridges,  to  obstruct  the  invader's  progress. 
With  great  labour  and  perseverance  Burgoyne  moved  forward,  and  on  the 
29th  of  July  he  encamped  upon  the  high  bank  of  the  Hudson,  at  tlic 
great  bend  ■where  the  village  of  Sandy  Hill  no^w  stands. 

At  this  time  a  tragedy  occurred  near  Fort  Edward,  which  produced  a 
great  sensation  throngliout  the  country,  and  has  been  a  theme  for  history, 
poetry,  romance,  and  song.  It  ■was  the  death  of  Jenny  M'Crea,  the 
daughter  of  a  Scotch  Presbyterian  clergyman,  who  is  described  as  lovely 
in  disposition,  graceful  in  manners,  and  so  intelligent  and  ■winning  in  all 
her  ■ways,  that  she  ■was  a  favourite  of  all  ■who  knew  her.  She  ■was  ■visiting 
a  Tory  friend  at  Fort  Edward  at  this  time,  and  was  betrothed  to  a  young 
man  of  the  neighbourhood,  ■who  was  a  subaltern  in  Burgoyne's  army. 
On  the  approach  of  the  invaders,  her  brother,  ■n'ho  lived  near,  fled,  ■with 
his  family,  down  the  river,  and  desired  Jenny  to  accompany  them.  She 
preferred  to  stay  under  the  protection  of  her  Tory  friend,  who  was  a 
widow,  and  a  cousin  of  General  Eraser,  of  Burgoyne's  army. 

Burgoyne  had  found  it  difficult  to  restrain  the  cruelty  of  his  Indians. 
To  secure  their  co-operation  ho  had  offered  them  a  bounty  for  prisoners 
and  scalps,  at  the  same  time  forbidding  them  to  kill  any  person  not  in 


THE    HUDSON. 


arms  for  the  sake  of  scalps.  The  offer  of  boimties  stimuluted  the  savages 
to  seek  captives  other  than  those  in  the  field,  and  they  went  out  in  small 
parties  for  the  purpose.  One  of  these  prowled  around  Fort  Edward  early 
on  the  morning  after  Burgoyne  arrived  at  Sandy  Hill,  and,  entering  the 
house  where  Jenny  was  staying,' carried  away  the  young  lady  and  her 


friend.  A  negro  boy  alarmed  the  garrison,  and  a  detachment  was  sent 
after  the  Indians,  who  were  fleeing  with  their  prisoners  toward  the  camp. 
They  had  caught  two  horses,  and  on  one  of  tliem  Jenny  was  already 
placed  by  them,   when  the  detachment  assailed  them  with  a  volley  of 


THE   HUDSON. 


musketry.  The  savages  were  unharmed,  but  one  of  the  bullets  mortally 
wounded  their  fair  captive.  She  fell  and  expired,  as  tradition  relates, 
near  a  pine-tree,  which  remained  as  a  memorial  of  the  tragedy  until  a 
few  years  ago.  Having  lost  their  prisoner,  they  secured  her  scalp,  and, 
with  her  black  tresses  wet  with  her  warm  blood,  they  hastened  to  the 
camp.  The  friend  of  Jenny  had  just  arrived,  and  the  locks  of  the  maiden, 
which  were  of  great  length  and  beauty,  were  recognised  by  her.  She 
charged  the  Indians  with  her  murder,  which  they  denied,  and  told  the 
story  substantially  as  it  is  here  related. 

This  appears,  from  corroborating  circumstances,  to  be  the  simple  truth 
of  a  story  which,  as  it  went  from  lip  to  lip,  became  magnified  into  a  tale 
of  darkest  horror,  and  produced  wide-spread  indignation.  General  Gates, 
who  had  just  superseded  General  Schuyler  in  the  command  of  the  northern 
army,  took  advantage  of  the  excitement  which  it  produced,  to  increase 
the  hatred  of  the  British  in  the  liearts  of  the  people,  and  he  charged 
Burgoyne  with  crimes  utterly  foreign  to  that  gentleman's  nature.  In  a 
published  letter,  he  accused  him  of  hiring  savages  to  "  scalp  Europeans 
and  the  descendants  of  Europeans ; "  spoke  of  Jenny  as  having  been 
"dressed  to  meet  her  promised  husband,  but  met  her  murderers,"  em- 
ployed by  Burgoj'ne ;  asserted  that  she,  with  several  women  and  children, 
had  been  taken  "from  the  house  into  the  woods,  and  there  scalped  and 
mangled  in  a  most  shocking  manner;"  and  alleged  that  he  had  "paid 
the  price  of  blood!"  This  letter,  so  untruthful  and  ungenerous,  was 
condemned  by  Gates's  friends  in  the  army.  But  it  had  the  desired  eftcct ; 
and  the  sad  story  of  Jenny's  death  was  used  with  power  against  the 
ministry  by  the  opposition  yi  the  British  parliament. 

The  lover  of  Jenny  left  the  army,  and  settled  in  Canada,  where  he  lived 
to  be  an  old  man.  He  was  naturally  gay  and  garrulous,  but  after  that 
event  he  was  ever  sad  and  taciturn.  He  never  married,  and  avoided 
society.  When  the  anniversary  of  the  tragedy  approached,  he  would 
shut  himself  in  his  room,  and  refuse  to  see  his  most  intimate  acquaint- 
ances ;  and  at  all  times  his  friends  avoided  speaking  of  the  American 
revolution  in  his  presence.  The  body  of  Jenny  was  buried  on  her  brother's 
land:  it  was  re-interred  at  Fort  Edward  in  1826,  with  imposing  cere- 
monies; and  again  in  1852,  her  remains  found  a  new  resting-place  in  a 


m 


THE   HUDSON. 


19 


beautiful  cemetery,  half-way  between  Fort  Edward  and  Sandy  Hill. 
Her  grave  is  near  the  entrance  ;  and  upon  a  plain  white  marble  stone,  six 
feet  in  height,  standing  at  its  head,  is  the  foUowing  inscription  : — 

"Here  rest  the  remains  of  Jano  M'Crea,  aged  17;  made  captive  and 
murdered  by  a  band  of  Indians,  while  on  a  visit  to  a  relative  in  the  neigh- 
bourhood, A.D.  1777.  To  commemorate  one  of  the  most  thrilling  incidents 
in  the  annals  of  the  American  revolution,  to  do  justice  to  the  fame  of  the 
gallant  British  officer  to  -whom  she  was  affianced,  and  as  a  simple  tribute 


BALM-OF-GILEAD  TREE. 


to  the  memory  of  the  departed,  this  stone  is  erected  by  her  niece,  Sarah 
Hanna  Payne,  a.d.  1852." 

No  relic  of  the  olden  time  now  remains  at  Fort  Edward,  excepting  a 
few  logs  of  the  fort  on  the  edge  of  the  river,  some  faint  traces  of  the 
embankments,  and  a  magnificent  Balm-of-Gilcad  tree,  which  stood,  a 
sapling,  at  the  water-gate,  when  Putnam  saved  the  magazine.  It  has 
three  huge  trunks,  springing  from  the  roots.  One  of  them  is  more  than 
half  decayed,  having  been  twice  riven  by  lightning  within  a  few  years. 
Upon  Rogers's  Island,  in  front  of  the  town,  where  armies  were  encamped, 


80 


THK    HUDSON. 


and  a  large  block-house  stood,  Indian  arrow-heads,  bullets,  and  occasionally 
a  piece  of  '*  eob-money,"  '•'  are  sometimes  upturned  by  the  plough. 

A  picture  of  the  village  of  Fort  Edward,  in  1 820,  shows  only  six  houses 
and  a  L-liurrh  ;  now,  as  we  liavc  observed,  it  was  a  busy  town  M'ith  two 


VIEW   AT  iOHT   EI'WARn. 


thousand  inhabitants.  Its  chief  industrial  establishment  was  an  extensive 
blast-furnace  for  converting  iron  ore  into  the  pure  metal.  Upon  rising 
ground,  and  overlooking  the  village  and  surrounding  country,  was  a 
colossal    educational    establishment,    called   the   Fort  Edward   Institute. 


*   The   old  silver  coins  occasionally 

luund  at  Fort  Edward  are  called  "  cob- 
money "  by  the  people.  I  could  not 
uscertuin  the  deiivalion  of  the  name. 
The  pictme  represents  both  sides  of  two 
pieces  in  my  possession,  the  proper  size. 
The  larger  one  is  a  cross- pist  are  en,  of 
tlie  vuUie  of  about  sixteen  cents ;  the 
other  is  a  quarter  liaLtion  of  the  same. 
Tliey  are  irregular  in  fonn,  and  the 
devices  and  dates,  respectively  1741  and 
n-lSjiire  imperfect.  These  Spanish  coins 
formed  tlie  bulk  of  the  specie  circulated  among  the  French  in  Canada  a  Uunihed  years  ago. 


'coi3-mum:i-. 


THE    HUDSON. 


81 


The  building  was  erected,  and  its  affairs  were  controlled,  by  the  Methodist 
denomination,  and  it  was  widely  known  as  one  of  the  most  flourishing 
institutions  of  its  kind  in  the  country.  The  building  was  five  stories  in 
height,  and  was  surrounded  by  pleasant  grounds.  It  is  seen  in  our  view 
at  Fort  Edward,  which  was  taken  from  the  end  of  the  bridge  that  con- 
nects Eogers's  Island  with  the  western  shore  of  the  Hudson.  The  blast- 
furnace, and  a  portion  of  the  Port  Edward  dam,  built  by  the  State  for 
the  use  of  the  Champlain  Canal,  is  also  seen  in  the  picture. 

A  carriage-ride  from  Fort  Edward  down  the  valley  of  the  Hudson, 


FORT  MILLER  RAPIDS. 


especially  on  its  western  side,  affords  exquisite  enjoyment  to  the  lover  of 
beautiful  scenery  and  the  displays  of  careful  cultivation.  The  public 
road  follows  the  river-bank  nearly  all  the  way  to  Troy,  a  distance  of  forty 
miles,  and  the  traveller  seldom  loses  sight  of  the  noble  stream,  which  is 
frequently  divided  by  islands,  some  cultivated,  and  others  heavily  wooded. 
The  most  important  of  these,  between  Fort  Edward  and  Schuylerville, 
are  Mum-o's,  Bell's,  Taylor's,  Galusha's,  and  Payne's ;  the  third  one  con- 
taining seventy  acres.     The  shores  of  the  river  are  eveiywhere  fringed 

M 


82 


THE   HUDSON. 


■with  beautiful  shade-trees  and  shrubbery,  and  fertile  lands  spread  out  on 
every  side. 

Seven  miles  below  Fort  Edward,  on  the  western  shore,  is  the  site  of 
Port  Miller,  erected  during  the  French  and  Indian  war ;  and  opposite,  at 
the  head  of  foaming  rapids,  which  afford  fine  water-power  for  mills,  is 
the  vUlage  of  Fort  Miller,  then  containing  between  two  and  three  hun- 
dred inhabitants.  Not  a  vestige  of  the  fort  remains.  The  river  here 
rushes  over  a  rough  rocky  bed,  and  falls  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  in  the 
course  of  eighty  rods.  Here  was  the  scene  of  another  of  Putnam's  adven- 
tures during  the  old  war.  He  was  out  with  a  scouting  party,  and  was 
lying  alone  in  a  batteau  on  the  east  side  of  the  river,  when  he  was  sur- 
prised by  some  Indians ;  he  could  not  cross  the  river  swiftly  enough  to 
escape  the  balls  of  their  rifles,  and  there  was  no  alternative  but  to  go 
down  the  foaming  rapids.  He  did  not  hesitate  a  moment.  To  the 
astonishment  of  the  savages,  he  steered  directly  down  the  current,  amid 
whirling  eddies  and  over  ragged  and  shelving  rocks,  and  in  a  few  moments 
his  vessel  had  cleared  the  rushing  waters,  and  was  gliding  upon  the 
tranquil  river  below,  far  out  of  reach  of  their  weapons.  The  Indians 
dared  not  make  the  perilous  voyage :  they  regarded  Putnam  as  God- 
protected,  and  believed  that  it  would  be  an  affront  to  the  Great  Spirit  to 
make  further  attempts  to  kill  him  with  powder  and  ball. 


CHAPTER    V. 


I  OR  the  twofold  purpose  of  affording  water-power 
for  mills,  and  providing  still  water  for  tlio  boats 
of  the  Champlain  Canal  to  cross,  the  Saratoga 
Dam  is  constructed  at  Fort  Miller,  three  mUcs 
below  the  rapids.  The  dam  forms  an  elbow 
iu  the  middle  of  the  stream,  and  is  about  1,400 
feet  in  length.  Below  it  are  considerable 
rapids ;  just  above  it  is  a  bridge,  which  has  a 
carriage-way  for  the  public  use,  and  a  narrower 
passage  for  the  horses  that  draw  the  canal  boats. 
These  vessels  float  safely  on  the  usually  still 
water  of  the  river,  but  sometimes,  when  the 
stream  is  very  full,  the  passage  is  attended  with  some  difficulty,  if  not 
danger,  on  account  of  the  strong  though  sluggish  current.  "When  we 
visited  the  spot,  a  large-class  boat  lay  wrecked  in  the  rapids  below, 
having  gone  over  the  dam  the  day  before. 

The  country  in  this  vicinity  is  beautiful :  the  valley  is  narrow,  and  the 
hills,  on  the  eastern  side  especially,  rise  one  above  the  other  in  the  land- 
scape, until  the  view  is  bounded  by  a  broken  mountain  range  beyond. 
Here  we  crossed  the  river  upon  the  canal  bridge,  and  rode  dowu  to  the 
mouth  of  the  Batten-Kill,  near  where  it  enters  the  Hudson,  to  visit  the 
spot  —on  the  plain  just  above  its  mouth — where  the  army  of  Burgoyne 
lay  encamped,  before  he  crossed  the  Hudson  to  engage  in  those  conflicts 
at  Bemis's  Heights,  which  resulted  in  his  discomfiture  and  captivity. 
There  he  established  a  slaughter-yard ;  and  it  is  said  that  the  fertility 
imparted  to  the  soil  by  the  blood  and  offal  left  there  was  visible  in  its 
effects  upon  the  crops  raised  thereon  for  more  than  sixty  years  afterwards. 
The  Batten-Kill  is  a  shallow  and  rapid  stream,  and  one  of  the  largest 
of  the  tributaries  of  the  Hudson,  flowing  in  from  the  eastward.      It  rises 


I 


84 


THE   HUDSON. 


iu  the  State  of  Vermont,  and,  before  leaving  the  horders  of  that  common- 
wealth, receives  the  Eoaring  branch  :  its  entire  length  is  about  fifty  miles. 
Within  two  miles  of  its  mouth  are  remarkable  rapids  and  falls,  which 
the  tourist  should  never  pass  by  unseen :  the  best  point  of  view  is  from 
the  bottom  of  a  steep  precipice  on  the  southern  side  of  the  stream.  The 
descent  is  fifty  or  sixty  feet,  veiy  difiioult,  and  somewhat  dangerous.  It 
was  raining  copiously  when  wo  visited  it,  which  made  the  descent  still 
more  diflicult,  for  the  loose  slate  and  the  small  sparse  shrubbery  were 


CAXAL  BRUIUE  AOKOSS  THE  HUDSON  ABOVE  THE  SAEATOGA  DAM. 


very  insecure.  Under  a  shelving  black  rock  on  the  margin  of  the  abyss 
into  which  the  waters  pour,  we  found  a  good  place  for  observation.  The 
spectacle  was  grand.  For  about  three  hundred  feet  above  the  great  fall, 
the  stream  rushes  through  a  narrow  rocky  chasm,  roaring  and  foaming ; 
and  then,  in  a  still  narrower  space,  it  leaps  into  the  dark  gulf  which  has 
been  named  the  Devil's  Caldron,  in  a  pei-pendicular  fall  of  almost  forty 
feet.  The  Indians  named  these  falls  Di-on-on-deh-o-ica,  the  signification 
of  which  we  could  not  learn. 

From  the  Li-on-on-deh-o-u-a  we  rode  to   Schuylerville,  crossing  the 


THE   HUDSON. 


85 


Hudson  upon  a  bridge  eight  hundred  feet  in  length,  just  below  the  site  of 
old  Fort  Hardy,  and  the  place  where  Burgoyne's  army  laid  down  their 
arms.  From  the  village  we  went  up  the  western  side  of  the  river  about 
a  mile,  and  from  a  slight  eminence  obtained  a  fine  view  of  the  scene  where 
the  Batten-KiU  enters  the  Hudson  in  two  channels,  having  a  fairy-like 
island  between  them.  The  river  is  there  about  six  hundred  feet  in  width, 
and  quite  deep. 

Upon  the  slope  opposite  the  mouth  'of  the  Batten-Kill  is  the  house  of 


CONFLUENCE  OF  THE  HUDSON  AND  BATTEN-KllL. 


Samuel  Marshall,  known  as  the  Eeidesel  House.  There,  eleven  years 
before,  the  writer  visited  an  old  lady,  ninety-two  yeaxs  of  age,  who  gave 
him  many  interesting  details  of  the  old  war  in  that  vicinity  :  she  died  at 
the  age  of  ninety-six.  This  house  was  made  famous  in  the  annals  of 
Burgoyne's  unfortunate  campaign  by  a  graphic  account  of  sufferings 
therein,  given  by  the  Baroness  Eeidesel,  wife  of  the  Brunswick  general 
who  commanded  the  German  troops  in  the  British  army.  She,  with  her 
children  and  domestics,  and  a  few  other  women,  and  wounded  officers, 
took  refuge  in  this  house  from  the  storm  of  iiTegular  conflict.  The 
Americans,  supposing  the  British  generals  were  in  that  house,  opened  a 


86 


THE    HUDSON. 


cannonade  upon  it,  and  all  the  inmates  took  refuge  in  the  cellar.  "  The 
ladies  of  the  army  who  were  with  me,"  says  the  Baroness,  "  were 
Mrs.  Harnage,  a  Mrs.  Kennels,  the  widow  of  a  lieutenant  who  was 
killed,  and  the  lady  of  the  commissary.  Major  Harnage,  his  wife,  and 
Mrs.  Kennels,  made  a  little  room  in  a  corner,  with  curtains  to  it,  and 
wished  to  do  the  same  for  me,  but  I  preferred  being  near  the  door,  in  case 


DI-ON-ON-DEH-O-AVA,   OE   GREAT  FAiLS   OF  THE  BATTEN-KLLL. 

of  fire.  Not  far  off  my  women  skpt,  and  opposite  to  me  three  English 
officers,  who,  though  wounded,  were  determined  not  to  be  left  behind : 
one  of  them  was  Captain  Green,  an  aide-de-camp  to  Major-Gcneral  Phillips, 
a  very  valuable  officer  and  most  agreeable  man.  They  each  made  me  a 
most  sacred  promise  not  to  leave  me  behind,  and,  in  case  of  sudden  retreat, 
that  they  would  each  of  them  take  one  of  my  children  on  his  horse ;  and 


M^ 


THE    HUDSON. 


87 


for  myself  one  of  my  husband's  was  in  constant  readiness The 

want  of  water  distressed  us  much ;  at  length  we  found  a  soldier's  wife 


'  VW  <?    rT:9iJM'>i 


THE  EEIDESEL  HOUSE. 


who  had  courage  enough  to  fetch  us  some  from  the  river — an  office  nobody 
else  would  undertake,  as  the  Americans  shot  at  every  person  who 
approached  it,  but  out  of  respect  for  her  sex  they  never  molested  her." 


CELLAR  t^F  REIDESEL  HOUSE. 


Six  days  these  ladies  and  their  companions  remained  in  that  cellar,  when 
hostilities  ceased,  and  the  British  army  surrendered  to  the  Americans. 


88 


THE    HUDSON. 


The  village  of  Scliuylerville  is  pleasantly  situated  upon  a  slope  on  the 
■western  margin  of  the  Upper  Hudson  valley,  on  the  north  bank  of  the 
Fish  Creek  (the  outlet  of  Saratoga  Lake),  which  there  leaps  to  the  plain 
in  a  series  of  beautiful  cascades,  after  being  released  from  the  labour  of 
turning  several  mill-wheels.  These  cascades  or  rapids  commence  at  the 
bridge  where  the  public  road  crosses  the  creek,  and  continue  for  many 
rods,  until  a  culvert  under  the  Champlain  Canal  is  passed.  Viewed  from 
the  grounds  around  the  Schuyler  mansion,  at  almost  every  point,  they 


EAPIDS  OF  THE  FISH  CREEK,  AT  SCHUTLEEVILLE. 


present  very  perfect  specimens  of  a   picturesque  water-course,  having 
considerable  strength  and  volume. 

The  village,  containing  about  twelve  hundred  inhabitants,  occupies  the 
site  of  General  Burgoyne's  intrenched  camp,  at  the  time  when  he  sur- 
rendered to  General  Gates,  in  the  autumn  of  1777.  It  was  named  in 
honour  of  General  Philip  Schuyler,  upon  whose  broad  domain  of  Saratoga, 
and  in  whose  presence,  the  last  scenes  in  that  memorable  campaign  were 
performed,  and  who,  for  forty  years,  was  a  conspicuous  actor  in  civil  and 
military  life  in  his  native  State  of  New  York. 


THE   HUDSON.  89 


Upon  one  of  the  conical  hills  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  valley,  just 
below  the  Batten-KiU,  was  old  Fort  Saratoga,  written  Sarahtogue  in  the 
old  records.  It  was  a  stockade,  weakly  garrisoned,  and,  with  the  scattered 
village  of  thirty  families,  of  the  same  name,  upon  the  plain  belcrw,  was 
destroyed  in  the  autumn  of  1745,  by  a  horde  of  Frenchmen  and  Indians, 
under  the  noted  partisan  Marin,  whose  followers,  as  we  have  seen,  per- 
formed a  sanguinary  tragedy  at  Sandy  Hill  ten  years  later.  They  had 
left  Montreal  for  the  purpose  of  making  a  foray  upon  some  English  settle- 
ments on  the  Connecticut  river.  It  was  late  in  the  season,  and  at  Crown 
Point,  on  Lake  Champlain,  the  Indians  refused  to  go  eastward,  because  of 
their  lack  of  preparations  for  the  rigour  of  winter.  On  the  suggestion  of 
Father  Piquet,  the  French  Prefect  Apostoliquo  of  Canada,  who  met  the 
expedition  at  Crown  Point,  Marin  led  his  white  and  red  savages  south- 
ward, towards  Orange,  as  Albany  was  then  called  by  the  French,  to  cut 
off  the  advancing  English  settlements,  and  bear  away  what  plunder  they 
might  obtain.  Father  Piquet  accompanied  them,  and  the  invaders  fell 
upon  the  inhabitants  when  they  were  asleep.  They  burnt  the  fort  and 
most  of  the  houses,  murdered  some  who  resisted,  and  carried  away  captive 
over  one  hundred  men,  women,  and  children. 

Upon  the  south  side  of  the  Fish  Creek,  on  the  margin  of  the  rapids, 
stood  a  brick  mansion,  pierced  near  the  roof  for  musketry,  and  owned  and 
occupied  by  a  kinsman  of  General  Schuyler,  bearing  the  same  name.  His 
house  was  attacked,  and  in  an  attempt  to  defend  it  he  was  shot.  His 
body  was  consumed,  with  other  persons  who  liad  escaped  to  the  cellar, 
when,  after  plundering  tlie  house,  the  savages  set  it  on  fire.  That  Saratoga 
estate  was  bequeathed  by  the  murdered  owner  to  his  nephew  Philip  (the 
General),  who  built  a  country  mansion,  elegant  for  the  times,  near  the 
site  of  the  old  one,  and  occupied  it  when  Burgoyne  invaded  the  valley  in 
1777.  During  that  invasion  the  general's  house  and  mills  were  burned 
by  Burgoyne' s  orders.  It  was  an  act  which  the  British  general  afterwards 
lamented,  for  he  soon  learned  to  honour  Schuyler  as  one  of  the  noblest 
men  he  had  ever  met.  The  mansion  was  rebuilt  immediately  after  the 
campaign  was  over,  a  few  rods  from  the  site  of  the  old  one,  but  in  a  style 
much  inferior  in  beauty  and  expense.  It  was  the  general's  countiy-seat 
(his  town  residence  being  in  Albany)  until  his  death  in  1804,  and  was 

N 


90 


THE    HUDSON. 


still  preserved  in  its  original  form  at  the  time  of  our  visit,  and  surrounded 
by  beautiful  shady  trees,  many  of  ■n-hieli  were  planted  by  the  master's 
own  hand.  It  was  then  the  residence  of  George  Strover,  Esq.,  -who  took 
pleasure  in  preserving  it  as  General  Schuyler  left  it.  Even  some  ancient 
lilac  shrubs,  now  quite  lofty  trees,  gnarled  and  unsightly,  that  were  in 
the  garden  of  the  old  mansion,  were  cherished  as  precious  mementoes  of 
the  past. 

An  outline  sketch  of  events  to  -which  allusion  has  just  been  made  is 


THE  SCHUYLER  MANSION. 


necessary  to  a  full  comprehension  of  the  isolated  historical  facts  with 
■which  this  portion  of  our  subject  abounds.  "We  will  trace  it  with 
rapid  pencil,  and  leave  the  completion  of  the  picture  to  the  canTul 
historian. 

The  campaigns  of  1775  and  1776,  against  tiie  rebellious  Americans, 
were  fruitless  of  any  satisfactory  results.  The  British  cabinet,  supported 
by  heavy  majorities  in  both  Houses  of  Parliament,  resoh-ed  to  open  the 
campaign  of  1777  with  such  vigour,  and  to  give  to  the  service  in  America 
such  material,  as  should  not  fail  to  put  down  the  rebellion  by  midsummer. 


THE    HUDSON.  91 


So  long  as  the  Ecpublicnns  remained  united,  so  long  as  there  existed  a 
free  communication  between  Massachusetts  and  Virginia,  or,  in  other 
words,  between  the  Eastern  and  the  Middle  and  Southern  States,  permanent 
success  of  the  British  arms  in  America  seemed  questionable.  The  rebellion 
was  hydi'a-headed,  springing  into  new  life  and  vigour  suddenly  and 
powerfully,  from  the  inherent  energies  of  union,  in  places  where  it  seemed 
to  be  subdued  or  destroyed.  To  sever  that  union,  and  to  paralyse  the 
vitality  dependent  thereon,  was  a  paramount  consideration  of  the  British 
Government  when  planning  the  campaign  of  1777. 

General  Sir  William  Howe  was  then  in  quiet  possession  of  the  city  of 
New  York,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Hudson  river.  A  strong  British  force 
occupied  llhode  Island,  ami  kept  watch  over  the  whole  eastern  coast  of 
New  England.  Republicans  who  had  invaded  Canada  had  been  driven 
back  by  Governor  Carleton  ;  and  nothing  remained  to  complete  the  separa- 
tion of  the  two  sections  of  the  American  States,  but  to  march  an  invading 
army  tVom  Canada,  secure  the  strongliolds  upon  Lakes  George  and  Cham- 
plain,  press  forward  to  Albany,  and  there  form  a  junction  with  Howe, 
whose  troops,  meanwhile,  should  have  taken  possession  of  the  Hudson 
Highlands,  and  every  place  of  importance  upon  that  river. 

The  leadership  of  that  invasion  from  the  North  was  intrusted  to 
Lieutenant-General  Sir  John  Burgoyne,  who  had  won  military  laurels  in 
Portugal,  had  held  a  seat  in  the  king's  council,  and  was  then  a  member 
of  Parliament.  He  arrived  at  Quebec  in  March,  1777,  and  in  June  had 
collected  a  large  force  of  English  and  German  troops,  Canadians,  and 
Indians,  at  the  foot  of  Lake  Champlain.  At  the  beginning  of  July  he 
invested  Ticonderoga  with  ten  thousand  men,  drove  the  Americans  from 
that  old  fortress  and  its  dependencies,  and,  as  we  have  observed,  swept 
victoriously  up  the  lake  to  Skenesborough,  and  advanced  to  Fort  Edward. 
From  that  point  lie  sent  a  detachment  to  Bennington,  in  Vermont,  to 
seize  cattle  and  provisions  for  the  use  of  the  array.  The  expedition  was 
defeated  by  militia,  under  Stark,  and  thereby  Burgoyne  received  a  blow 
from  which  he  did  not  recover.  Yet  he  moved  forward,  crossed  the  Hudson 
a  little  above  Schuylerville,  and  pitched  his  tents,  and  formed  a  fortified 
camp  upon  the  site  of  that  village.  He  had  stated  at  Fort  Edward  that 
he  should  eat  his  Christmas  dinner  in  Albany,  a  laurelled  conqueror,  with 


^17. 


92  THE    HUDSON, 


the  great  objects  of  the  campaign  perfectly  accomplished ;  but  now  he 
began  to  doubt. 

General  Schuyler  had  been  the  commander  of  the  troops  opposed  to 
Burgoyne  imtil  the  19th  of  August,  when  he  surrendered  his  charge  to 
General  Gates,  a  conceited  officer,  very  much  his  inferior  in  every  par- 
ticulai'.     This  superscdurc  had  been  accomplished  by  political  intrigue. 

When  Burgoyne  crossed  the  Hudson,  Gates,  then  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Mohawk,  advanced  with  his  troops  to  Bemis's  Height,  about  twelve  miles 
below  the  halting  British  army,  and  there  established  a  fortified  camp. 
Perceiving  the  necessity  of  immediate  hostile  action — because  the  Kepub- 
lioau  army  was  hourly  augmenting  (volunteers  flocking  in  from  all 
quarters,  and  particularly  from  New  England) — Burgoyne  crossed  the 
Fish  Creek,  burned  the  mills  and  mansion  of  General  Schuyler,  and 
advanced  upon  Gates. 

A  severe  but  indecisive  battle  was  fought  at  Bemis's  Heights  on  the 
1 9th  of  September ;  Burgoyne  fell  back  a  few  miles  toward  his  intrenched 
camp,  and  resolved  there  to  await  the  expected  approach  of  Sir  Henry 
Clinton,  with  a  large  force,  up  the  lower  Hudson.  Clinton  was  tardy, 
perils  were  thickening,  and  Burgoyne  resolved  to  make  another  attack 
upon  Gates.  After  a  severe  battle  fought  on  the  7th  of  October,  upon 
almost  the  same  ground  occupied  in  the  engagement  on  the  19th  of  Sep- 
tember, he  was  again  compelled  to  fall  back.  He  finally  retreated  to  his 
intrenched  camp  beyond  the  Fish  Creek. 

Burgoyno's  force  was  now  hourlj'  diminishing,  the  Canadians  and 
Indians  deserting  him  in  groat  numbers,  while  volunteers  were  swelling 
the  ranks  of  Gates.  The  latter  now  advanced  upon  Burgoyne,  and,  on 
the  17th  of  October,  that  general  surrendered  his  army  of  almost  six 
thousand  men,  and  all  its  appointments,  into  the  hands  of  the  Eepublicans. 
The  forts  upon  Lakes  George  and  Champlain  were  immediately  abandoned 
by  the  British,  and  the  Republicans  held  an  unobstructed  passage  from 
the  Hudson  Highlands  to  St.  John,  on  the  Sorcl,  in  Canada. 

The  spot  where  Burgoyne's  army  laid  down  their  arms  is  upon  the 
plain  in  front  of  Schuylerville,  near  the  site  of  old  Fort  Hardy,  a  little 
north  of  the  highway  leading  from  the  village  across  the  Hudson,  over 
the  long  bridge  already  mentioned.     Our  view  is  taken  from  one  of  the 


THE    HUDSON. 


93 


canal  bridges,  looking  north-east.  The  Hudson  is  seen  beyond  the  place 
of  surrender,  and  in  the  more  remote  distance  may  be  observed  the  conical 
hiUs  which,  on  the  previous  day,  had  swarmed  with  American  volunteers. 
With  the  delicate  courtesy  of  a  gentleman,  General  Gates  ordered  aU 
his  ai'my  within  his  camp,  that  the  vanquished  might  not  be  submitted  to 
the  mortification  of  their  gaze  at  the  moment  of  the  great  humiliation. 
The  two  generals  had  not  yet  seen  each  other.  As  soon  as  the  troops  had 
laid  down  their  arms,  Burgoyne  and  his  officers  proceeded  towards  Gates'^s 


RCEAE  OF  BURGOiXE'S  SURRE>DER. 


camp,  to  be  introduced.  They  crossed  the  Fish  Creek  at  the  head  of  tho 
rapids,  and  proceeded  towards  the  republican  general's  quarters,  about  a 
mile  and  a-half  down  the  river.  Burgoyne  led  the  way,  with  Kingston 
(his  adjutant-general),  and  his  aides-de-camp.  Captain  Lord  Petersham 
and  Lieutenant  Wilford,  followed  by  Generals  Phillips,  Eeidesel,  and 
Hamilton,  and  other  officers,  according  to  ralik.  General  Gates,  informed 
of  the  approach  of  Burgoyne,  went  out  with  his  staff  to  meet  him  at  the 
head  of  his  camp.  Burgoyne  was  dressed  in  a  rich  uniform  of  scarlet  and 
gold,  and  Gates  in  a  plain  blue  frock  coat.     "When  within  about  a  sword's 


94 


THE   HUDSON. 


length  of  each  other,  they  reined  up  their  liorses,  and  halted.  Colonel 
"Wilkinson,  Gates's  aide-de-camp,  then  introduced  the  two  generals.  Both 
dismounted,  and  Burgoyne,  raising  his  hat  gracefully,  said — "The 
fortune  of  war.  General  Gates,  has  made  me  your  prisoner."  The  victor 
promptly  replied — "I  shall  always  be  ready  to  bear  testimony  that  it 
has  not  been  through  any  fault  of  your  excellency."  The  other  officers 
were  then  introduced  in  turn,  and  the  whole  party  repaired  to  Gates's 
head-quarters,  where  the  best  dinner  that  could  be  procured  was  served. 
The   plain   farmhouse   in   which   that   remarkable   dinner-party   was 


GATES  S  HEAD    JlABTtBls. 


assembled  remained  unaltered  externally  when  we  visited  it,  excepting 
such  changes  as  have  been  effected  by  necessary  repairs.  It  stood  about 
eighty  rods  from  the  Hudson,  on  the  western  margin  of  the  plain ;  and 
between  it  and  the  river  the  Champlain  Canal  passed.  Our  sketcli  was 
made  from  the  highway,  and  includes  glimses  of  the  canal,  the  river,  and 
the  hills  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  plain. 

The  Baroness  lleidesel,  in  her  narrative  of  these  events,  says :   "I  was, 
I  confess,  afraid  to  go  over  to  the  enemy,  as  it  was  quite  a  new  situation 


THE   HUDSON.  95 


to  me.     When  I  drew  near  the  tents,  a  handsome  man  approached  and 

met  mc,  took  my  children  from  the  caUclie,  and  hugged  and  kissed  them, 
which  affected  me  almost  to  tears.  '  You  tremble,'  said  he,  addressing 
himself  to  me;  'be  not  afraid.'  'No,'  I  answered,  '  you  seem  so  kind 
and  tender  to  my  children,  it  inspires  me  with  courage.'  He  now  led  me 
to  the  tent  of  General  Gates,  where  I  found  Generals  Burgoyne  and  Phillips, 
who  were  on  a  friendly  footing  with  the  former. 

"All  the  generals  remained  to  dine  with  General  Gates.  The  same 
gentleman  who  received  me  so  kindly,  now  came  and  said  to  me,  '  You 
will  be  very  much  embarrassed  to  eat  with  all  those  gentlemen ;  come 
with  your  children  to  my  tent,  where  I  will  prepare  for  you  a  frugal 
dinner,  an4  give  it  with  a  free  will.'  I  said,  '  You  are  certainly  a  husband 
and  a  father,  you  have  shown  me"  so  much  kindness.'  I  now  found  that 
he  was  General  Schuyler.  He  treated  me  with  excellent  smoked  tongiic, 
beef-steaks,  potatoes,  and  good  bread  and  butter.  Never  could  I  have 
wished  to  eat  a  better  dinner.  I  was  content ;  I  saw  all  around  me  were 
so  likewise.  "When  we  had  dined,  he  told  me  his  residence  was  at  Albany, 
and  that  General  Burgoyne  intended  to  honour  him  as  his  guest,  and 
invited  myself  and  children  to  do  so  likewise.  I  asked  my  husband  how 
I  should  act ;  ho  told  me  to  accept  the  invitation."  General  Schuyler's 
house  at  Albany  yet  remains,  and  there  we  shall  hereafter  meet  the 
Baroness  and  Burgoyne,  as  guests  of  that  truly  noble  republican. 

The  Hudson,  from  Scliuylerville  to  StUlwater,  a  distance  of  about 
thirteen  miles,  flows  through  a  rich  plain,  and  its  course  is  unbroken  by 
island,  rapid,  or  bridge.  Between  it  and  the  western  margin  of  the  plain 
is  the  Champlain  Canal,  bearing  upon  its  quiet  bosom  the  wealth  of  a 
large  internal  commerce,  extending  from  New  York  and  Albany  to  Canada. 
It  was  spanned,  for  the  convenience  of  the  farmers  through  whose  land  it 
passes,  with  numerous  bridges,  stiff  and  ungraceful  in  appearance,  and  all 
of  the  same  model.  A  picture  of  one  of  them  is  given  at  the  head  of  this 
chapter.  The  river  was  also  crossed  in  several  places  by  means  of  rope 
ferries.  These,  at  times,  presented  quite  picturesque  scenes,  when  men 
and  women,  teams,  live  stock,  and  merchandize,  happen  to  constitute  the 
freight  at  one  time.  The  vehicle  was  a  large  scow  or  batteau,  which  was 
pushed  by  means  of  long  poles,  that  reached  to  the  bottom  of  the  river ; 


96 


THE    HUDSON. 


and  it  was  kept  in  its  course,  in  defiance  of  the  current,  by  ropes  fore  and 
aft,  attached  by  friction  rollers  to  a  stout  cable  stretched  across  the  stream. 
There  were  several  of  these  ferries  between  Tort  Edward  and  StiUwater, 
the  one  most  used  being  that  at  Bemis's  Heights,  of  which  we  give  a 
drawing. 

Three  miles  below  SchuylerviUe,  on  the  same  side  of  the  river,  is  the 
hamlet  of  Coveville,  formerly  called  Do-ve-gat,  or  Van  Vechten's  Cove. 
It  is  a  pretty,  quiet  little  place,  and  sheltered  by  hills  in  the  rear  ;  the 


iB=-----^,i;iia_tO 


HOPE  FEERY. 


inhabitants  are  chiefly  agriculturists,  and  the  families  of  those  employed 
in  canal  navigation.  Here  Bm-goyne  halted,  and  encamped  for  two  days, 
after  leaving  his  intrenched  camp  to  confront  Gates,  while  a  working 
party  repaired  the  roads  and  bridges  in  advance  to  Wilbur's  Basin,  three 
miles  below.  He  then  advanced,  and  pitched  his  tents  at  the  latter  place, 
upon  the  narrow  plain  between  the  river  and  the  hills,  and  upon  the 
slopes.  Here  he  also  encamped  on  the  morning  after  the  first  battle  at 
Bemis's  Heights,  the  opening  of  a  cloudy,  dull,  and  cheerless  day,  that 
harmonised  with  the  feelings  of  the  British  commander.     He  felt  con- 


^m^  '"^^ 


THE   HUDSON. 


97 


vincecl  that,  witliout  the  aid  of  General  Clinton's  co-operation  in  drawing 
off  a  part  of  the  republican  army  to  the  defence  of  the  country  below,  he 
should  not  be  able  to  advance.  Yet  he  wrought  diligently  in  strengthening 
his  position.  He  erected  four  redoubts,  one  upon  each  of  four  hills,  two 
above  and  two  below  "Wilbur's  Basin,  and  made  lines  of  intrenchments 
from  them  to  the  river,  covering  each  with  a  battery.  From  this  camp 
he  marched  to  battle  on  the  7th  of  October,  and  in  that  engagement  lost 


BDBGOrSE's  ENCAMPMEST  (from  a  print  puUishod  in  London,  in  1779). 


his  gallant  friend.  General  Simon  Fraser,  who,  at  the  head  of  five  huncb-cd 
picked  men,  was  the  directing  spirit  of  the  British  troops  in  action.  This 
was  perceived  by  the  American  commanders,  for  Fraser's  skill  and  courage 
wore  everywhere  conspicuous.  When  the  lines  gave  way,  he  brought 
order  out  of  confusion ;  when  regiments  began  to  waver,  he  infused 
courage  into  them  by  voice  and  example.  He  was  mounted  upon  a 
splendid  iron-grey  gelding,  and  dressed  in  the  full  uniform  of  a  field 
officer.  He  was  thus  made  a  conspicuous  object  for  the  mark  of  the 
Americans. 

It  was  evident  that  the  fate  of  the  battle  depended  upon  General  Fraser, 


I 


98 


THE    HUDSON. 


and  this  the  keen  eye  and  quick  judgment  of  Colonel  Morgan,  commander 
of  a  rifle  corps  from  the  south,  perceived.  A  thought  flashed  through  his 
brain,  and  in  an  instant  he  prepared  to  execute  a  deadly  purpose.  Calling 
a  file  of  his  best  men  around  him,  he  said,  as  he  pointed  toward  the 
British  right  wing,  which  was  making  its  way  victoriously, — "  That 
gallant  officer  is  General  Fraser ;  I  admu'o  and  honour  him,  but  it  is 
necessary  he  should  die ;  victory  for  the  enemy  depends  upon  him.  Take 
your  stations  in  that  clump  of  bushes,  and  do  your  duty."  "Within  five 
minutes  after  this  order  was  given,  General  Fraser  fell,  and  was  carried 


HODSE  IN  WHICH  GENEEAL  FHASEB  DIED. 


from  the  field  by  two  grenadiers.  His  aide-de-camp  had  just  observed 
that  the  general  was  a  particular  mark  for  the  enemy,  and  said, — "Would 
it  not  be  prudent  for  you  to  retire  from  this  place?"  Eraser  replied, 
"  My  duty  forbids  mc  to  fly  from  danger,"  and  the  next  moment  he  fell. 
About  half  way  between  Wilbur's  Basin  and  Bemis's,  stood,  until 
within  twenty  years,  a  rude  building,  the  upper  half  somewhat  projecting, 
and  every  side  of  it  battered  and  pierced  by  bullets.  It  was  used  by 
Burgoyno  as  his  quarters  when  he  first  moved  forward  to  attack  Gates, 


THE   HUDSON. 


99 


and  there  the  Baron  Eeidesel  had  his  quarters  at  the  time  of  the  battle  of 
the  7th  of  October.  Thither  the  wounded  Eraser  was  conveyed  by  his 
grenadiers,  and  consigned  to  the  care  of  the  wife  of  the  Brunswick 
general. 

"About  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,"  says  the  baroness,  "iDstead  of 
the  guests  [Burgoyne  and  Phillips]  whom  I  expected  to  dinner.  General 
Eraser  was  brought  on  a  litter  mortally  wounded.  The  table,  which  was 
already  set,  was  instantly  removed,  and  a  bed  placed  in  its  stead  for  the 
wounded  general.     He  said  to  the  surgeon,   '  Tell  me  if  my  wound  is 


feaser's  bueial-place. 


mortal ;  do  not  flatter  me.'  The  ball  had  passed  through  liis  body,  and, 
unhappily  for  the  general,  he  had  eaten  a  very  hearty  breakfast,  by  which 
the  stomach  was  distended,  and  the  ball,  as  the  surgeon  said,  had  passed 
through  it.  I  often  heard  him  exclaim,  with  a  sigh,  '  0  fatal  ambition ! 
Poor  General  Burgoyne  !  0  my  dear  wife  ! '  He  was  asked  if  he  had  any 
request  to  make,  to  which  he  replied,  that,  if  General  Burgoyne  would 
permit  it,  he  should  like  to  be  buried  at  six  o'clock  in  the  evening,  on  the 
top  of  a  mount,  in  a  redoubt  which  had  been  built  there." 


100 


THE    HUDSON. 


General  Fraser  died  at  ciglit  o'clock  tlie  following  morning,  and  was 
buried  in  the  redoubt  upon  the  bill  at  six  o'clock  that  evening,  according 
to  his  desire.*  It  was  just  at  sunset,  on  a  mild  October  evening,  when 
the  funeral  procession  moved  slowly  up  the  hUl,  bearing  the  body  of  the 
gallant  dead.  It  was  composed  of  only  the  members  of  his  own  militai-y 
family,  the  commanding  generals,  and  Mr.  Brudcnell,  the  chaplain ;  yet 
the  eyes  of  hundreds  of  both  armies  gazed  upon  the  scene.    The  Americans, 


BEILSON'S  DOUSE,  BEMIS'S  HEIGHTS. 

ignorant  of  the  true  character  of  the  procession,  kept  up  a  constant  can- 
nonade upon  the  redoubt,  toward  which  it  was  moving.  Undismayed, 
the  companions  of  Fraser  buried  him  just  as  the  evening  shadows  came 
on.  Before  the  impressive  burial  services  of  the  Anglican  Church  were 
ended,  the  irregular  firing  ceased,  and  the  solemn  voice  of  a  single  canon, 
at  measured  intervals,  boomed  along  the  valley,  and  awakened  responses 
from  the  hills.     It  was  a  minute-gun,  fired  by  the  Americans  in  honour 


*  The  redoubt  was  upon  tlie  middle  one  of  the  thi-ee  hills  seen  ia  the  picture  of  Burgoyne'a 
encampment. 


THE   HUDSON.  101 


of  the  accomplishccl  soldier.  When  information  reached  the  Republicans 
that  the  gathering  at  the  redoubt  was  a  funeral  company,  fulfilling  the 
wishes  of  a  brave  officer,  the  cannonade  with  balls  instantly  ceased. 

Other  gallant  British  officers  were  severely  wounded  on  that  day ;  one 
of  these  was  the  accomplished  Major  Ackland,  of  the  grenadiers,  who  was 
accompanied  in  the  campaign  by  his  charming  wife,  the  Lady  Harriet, 
fifth  daughter  of  Stephen,  first  Earl  of  Ilchester,  and  great-grandmother 
of  the  present  Earl  of  Carnarvon.  He  was  shot  through  both  legs,  and 
conveyed  to  the  house  of  Mr.  Neilson,  upon  Bemis's  Heights,  within  the 
American  lines. 


CHAPTEE   VI. 


IHE  heroic  Lady  Ackland  had  listened  to  the  thunder  of 
the  battle  in  which  her  husband  was  engaged,  and 
when,  on  the  morning  of  the  8th,  the  British  fell  back 
in  confusion  toward  Wilbur's  Basin,  she,  with  the 
other  women,  was  obliged  to  take  refuge  among  the 
dead  and  dying,  for  the  tents  were  all  struck,  and  hardly  a  shed 
was  left  standing.  Then  she  was  informed  that  her  husband  was 
woiindod  and  a  prisoner.  She  instantly  sought  the  advice  of  her 
friend,  the  Baroness  Eeidcscl,  and  resolved  to  visit  the  American 
camp,  and  implore  the  privilege  of  a  personal  attendance  upon  her  husband. 
She  sent  a  message  by  Lord  Petersham  to  Burgoyne,  asking  his  permission 
to  depart.  The  general  was  astonished  that,  after  all  she  had  endured 
from  exposure  to  cold,  hunger,  and  heavy  rain,  she  should  be  capable  of 
such  an  undertaking.  "  The  assistance  I  was  enabled  to  give,"  he  said, 
"  was  small  indeed.  I  had  not  even  a  cup  of  wine  to  offer  her;  but  I 
was  told  she  had  found,  from  some  kind  and  fortunate  hand,  a  little  rum 
and  du'ty  water.  All  I  could  furnish  to  her  was  an  open  boat,  and  a  few 
lines  written  upon  dirty  wet  paper,  to  General  Gates,  recommending  her 
to  his  protection."  * 

Lady  Harriet  set  out  in  an  open  boat  on  the  Hudson,  accompanied  by 
Chaplain  Brudenell,  her  waiting-maid,  and  her  husband's  valet,  who  had 


*  Tlie  following  is  a  copy  of  Burgojme's  nole  to  Gates; — 

.Sib,— Liiilj'  HaiTiet  Acklaml,  a  laily  of  the  firat  ilislinction  of  family,  rank,  and  personal  virtncs,  is 
under  such  concern  on  account  of  Miijoi-  Ackland,  lier  husband,  wounded  and  a  prisoner  in  your  hamls, 
that  I  cauuot  refuse  her  request  to  commit  her  to  your  protection.  Whatever  general  impropriety  tliere 
may  be  in  persons  of  my  situation  and  yours  to  solicit  favours,  I  canuot  see  tlie  uncommon  perseverance 
in  eveiy  female  grace  aud  exaltation  of  character  of  this  lady,  and  her  very  hai'd  fortune,  without 
testifj-ing  that  your  attention  to  her  will  lay  me  under  obligations. 

I  am.  Sir,  your  obedient  servant, 

J.  BUEGOYNE. 

Tins  note  is  preserved  among  Gates's  manuscript  papers,  in  tlie  collection  of  the  New  York  Historical 
Society. 


THE    HUDSON. 


103 


been  severely  ■woimdod  wtile  searching  for  his  master  on  the  battle-field. 
They  started  at  sunset,  in  the  midst  of  a  violent  stoi-m  of  wind  and  rain. 
It  -n-as  long  after  dark  when  they  reached  the  American  outposts,  and 
there  they  were  detained,  in  a  comfortable  position,  until  orders  should 
be  received  from  head-quarters.  Early  in  the  morning  she  received  the 
joyful  tidings  that  her  husband  was  safe.  At  the  same  time  she  was 
treated  with  paternal  kindness  by  General  Gates,  who  sent  her  to  her 
husband  at  Neilson's  house,  under  a  suitable  escort.  She  found  him 
suffering,  but  well  taken  care  of,  in  the  portion  of  the  house  occupied  as 


BOOM  OCCUPIED  BY   MAJOIi   ACKLAM). 


quarters  by  General  Poor,  and  there  she  remained  untO.  Major  Ackland 
was  removed  to  Albany,  and  finally  to  New  York.* 

From  the  house  of  Mr.  Neilson,  whose  descendants  now  occupy  it,  a 
fine  view  of  the  surrounding  country  may  be  obtained.  On  the  north  and 
west,  beginning  at  its  very  doors,  lies  the  entire  battle-ground  of  the  1 9th 
of  September  ;  and  bounding  the  horizon  in  the  distance  beyond,  are  the 
Luzerne  Mountains  (akeady  mentioned),  throiigh  which  flow  the  waters 
of  the  Upper  Hudson.  On  the  east  rise  "VVillard's  Mountain,  the  heights 
of  Bennington,  the  Green  Mountains,  and  the  famous  Mount  Tom ;  and 
stretching  away  in  the  blue  distances  towards  Albany,  are  seen  the  gentle 
hills  and  beautiful  valley  of  the  Hudson.     And  there  the  visitor  may  see 


*  Slajor  Acklaiul  died  in  November,  1778.  Ou  her  return  to  England,  a  portrait  of  Lady  Hai-riet, 
standing  in  a  boat,  mtli  a  white  handkerchief  in  her  hand  as  a  flag  of  truce,  was  exhibited  at  the  Royal 
Academy  (London),  from  which  a  plate  was  afterwards  engraved.  The  person  of  her  ladyship  was 
spoken  of  as  "  highly  graceful  and  delicate,"  and  her  manners  "  elegantly  feminine." 


104 


THE   HUDSON. 


many  relics  from  the  battle-field,  turned  up  by  tte  plough,  such  as 
cannon-balls,  bullets,  Indian  tomahawks  and  knives,  rusty  musket  barrels, 
bayonets,  halberds,  military  buttons,  pieces  of  money,  et  csctera. 

At  the  foot  of  Bemis's  Heights,  -where  the  old  tavern  of  Bemis — 
famous  for  good  wines  and  long  pipes,  a  spacious  ball-room  and  a  rich 
larder — once  stood,  a  pleasant  hamlet  has  grown  up.  It  is  one  of  the 
numerous  offsprings  of  the  canal.  Two  miles  below  it,  at  the  head  of 
long  rapids,  is  Stillwater,  the  most  pleasing  in  situation  and  appearance 
of  all  the  villages  in  the  valley  of  the  Upper  Hudson.  It  is  otherwise 
remarkable  only  for  a  long,  gloomy,  and  unsightly  covered  toll-bridge, 
which,  resting  upon  several  huge  piers,  spans  the  Hudson ;  and  also  as 


EELICS  FROM  THE  BATTLE-FIELD. 


the  head-quarters  of  the  republican  army,  for  a  short  time,  in  the  summer 
of  1777,  after  they  had  retreated  down  the  valley  before  victorious 
Burgoyne.  The  house  of  Derrick  Swart,  where  General  Schuyler  had 
his  quarters  at  that  time,  was  yet  standing  in  the  upper  part  of  the  village, 
and  awakened  in  the  mind  of  the  historical  student  recollections  of  a  scene 
that  occuiTcd  there  at  a  most  gloomy  period  of  the  campaign.  The  army, 
wretchedly  furnished  and  daily  diminishing,  had  retreated  before  an 
exultant  foe;  food,  clothing,  and  artillery  were  all  wanting.  The 
pecuniary  resources  and  public  credit  of  the  continental  congress  were 
failing,  and  all  the  future  seemed  dark.  At  that  moment  intelligence 
came  that  Colonel  St.  Lcger,  who  had  been  sent  up  the  St.  Lawrence  by 
Burgoyne,  with  instructions  to  cross  Lake  Ontario  to  Oswego,  penetrate 


THE   HUDSON. 


105 


the  Moliawk  valley  from  that  point,  form  an  alliance  with  the  Tories  and 
Indians,  and  press  forward  to  Albany  with  destructive  energy,  had  actually 
appeared  before  Fort  Schuyler,  where  the  village  of  Eome  now  stands. 
The  people  of  the  Mohawk  valley  were  wild  with  consternation,  and  sent 
swift  messengers  to  General  Schuyler,  imploring  immediate  assistance. 
The  prudent  foresight  and  far-reaching  humanity  of  that  officer  at  once 
dictated  his  course.  He  called  a  council  of  oiBcers  at  his  quarters,  and 
proposed  sending  a  detachment  immediately  to  the  relief  of  Fort  Schuyler. 


DEEEICK   S«AET'S  HOUSE  AT  STILLWATEE. 


They  opposed  him  with  the  argument  that  his  whole  force  was  insufficient 
to  stay  the  progress  of  Burgoyne.  Schuyler  persisted  in  his  opinion,  and 
earnestly  besought  them  to  second  his  views.  His  political  enemies  had 
already  sown  the  seeds  of  distrust  concerning  his  intentions ;  and  as  he 
was  pacing  the  floor  in  anxious  solicitude,  he  heard  from  one  of  his 
subordinate  officers  the  half- whispered  remark,  "He  means  to  weaken 
the  army."  Never  was  a  thought  more  unjust  and  ungenerous !  Wheeling 
suddenly  toward  the  slanderer  and  those  around  him,  and  unconsciously 
biting  into  several  pieces  a  pipe  that  he  was  smoking,  Schuyler  indignantly 

V 


106 


THE   HUDSON. 


exclaimocl,  "Gentlemen,  I  shall  take  the  responsibility  upon  myself; 
where  is  the  brigadier  that  will  take  command  of  the  relief  ?  I  shall 
beat  up  for  volunteers  to-morrow." 

The  brave  and  impulsive  Arnold,  who  afterwards  became  a  traitor,  at 
once  stepped  forward.  The  next  morning,  when  the  drum  beat  for 
volunteers,  no  less  than  eight  hundred  strong  men  offered  their  services. 
They  were  enrolled ;  Fort  Schuyler  was  saved,  and  the  forces  of  St.  Leger 
scattered  to  the  winds.  In  after  j^ears  the  recollection  of  those  burning 
words  of  calumny  always  stirred  the  spii-it  of  the  veteran  patriot  with 
violent  emotions ;  for  if  ever  a  bosom  glowed  with  true  devotion  to  his 
country,  it  was  that  of  Philip  Schuyler. 

From  Stillwater  to  Troy  at  the  head  of  free  sloop  navigation,  a  distance 
of  about  sixteen  miles,  the  Hudson  flows  in  a  rapid  stream,  sometimes 
turbulent,  but  generally  with  a  placid  current.  The  valley,  maintaining 
the  same  average  width  and  general  aspect,  becomes  richer  in  numerous 
farm-houses  and  more  cai'cful  cultivation  as  we  approach  the  cluster  of 
large  towns  whose  church  spires  maybe  seen  soon  after  leaving  Mechanics- 
villc  find  Half-Moon,  two  pleasant  little  villages  on  the  west  bank  of  the 
Hudson.  These  are  in  the  township  of  Half-Moon,  so  called  in  memory 
of  Hindrick  Hudson's  famous  yacht,  in  which  he  discovered  the  river 
th.it  bears  his  name.  They  are  a  short  distance  below  Stillwater.  The 
C'hamplain  Canal  and  the  Rensselaer  and  Saratoga  Railway  pass  through 
them.  On  the  site  of  tlie  latter  village  stood  "  y''  ffort  of  y^  Half-Moon, 
about  y<=  house  and  barne  of  Harm"  Lievesi^  " — a  stockade  for  defence 
against  the  Indians.     It  was  removed  in  the  year  1689. 

The  summer  drive  upon  the  public  road  in  this  part  of  the  valley  is 
delightful.  The  plain  and  slopes  have  the  appearance  of  a  garden  ;  while 
the  hills  on  both  sides  present  sweet  pictures  of  mingled  forest  and  culti- 
vated fields,  enlivened  by  small  flocks  and  herds,  and  dotted  with  the 
homes  of  a  thrifty  people.  But  the  river  appears  solitary.  Not  a  boat 
may  be  seen  upon  it,  until  Waterford  is  passed,  for  the  current  is  too 
swift  for  navigation.  "The  water  in  the  river  here,"  wrote  Kalm,  the 
Swedish  naturalist  and  traveller,  in  his  journal,  more  than  one  hundred 
years  ago,  "was  very  clear,  and  generally  shallow,  being  only  from  two 
to  four  feet  deep,  running  very  violently  against  us  in  most  places." 


THE   HUDSON. 


107 


Between  Mechanicsville  and  "Waterford,  near  the  junction  of  two  rail- 
•ways,  the  viaduct  of  the  Vermont  Central  Railroad,  twelve  hundred  feet 
in  length,  stretches  across  the  Hudson.  It  is  constructed  of  sc^uare 
timber,  and  rests  upon  heavy  stone  piers,  besides  the  shore  abutments. 
From  that  point  to  "Waterford,  the  river  views  from  the  highway  are  very 
picturesque,  and  when  within  half  a  mile  of  that  large  village  upon  Half- 
Moon  Point,  at  a  bend  in  the  stream,  the  traveller  obtains  a  sight  of 
"Waterford  and  Lansingburgh,  on  opposite  sides  of  the  river,  with  the 


VIADUCT  OF  THE  VERMONT  CENTEAL  RAILWAY. 


covered  toll-bridge  that  connects  them.  The  church  spires  of  Troy  are 
also  seen,  and  in  dim  blue  outline,  in  the  extreme  southern  horizon, 
appear  the  higher  spurs  of  the  Katzbergs,  or  Catskill  Mountains. 

"Waterford  is  a  very  pleasant  town,  at  the  confluence  of  the  Mohawk 
and  Hudson  rivers,  and  had  then  a  little  more  than  three  thousand 
inhabitants.  It  stands  upon  the  level  bank  of  the  Hudson.  Most  of  its 
streets  are  fringed  with  the  maple  and  elm,  the  favourite  shade  trees 
in  the  northern  and  eastern  villages  and  cities  of  the  United  States.  It 
is  a  young  town,  compared  with  Lansingburgh,  its  stiU  more  pleasant 


108 


THE    HUDSON. 


neighbour  across  tlio  river,  whicli  was  dignified  with  the  title  of  New 
City  as  early  as  1788,  when  its  now  stately  rival,  Troy,  could  not  boast 
of  half-a-dozen  houses,  and  was  known  only  as  Vanderheyden,  or  Ashley's 
Ferry.  It  has  outstripped  that  older  town  in  population,  and  equals  it 
in  enterprise.  Between  them  the  current  of  the  Hudson  is  strong,  yet 
vessels  laden  with  merchandise  ascend  to  the  wharves  of  each,  with  the 


WATEEFOED  AND  LANSINGBUEGH  BBIDGE. 


aid  of  small  steam-tugs,  which  tow  them  from  the  draw  of  the  great 
bridge  at  Troy,  two  miles  below. 

At  Watorford  the  ear  catches  the  subdued  roar  of  Colioes  Falls  *  in  the 
Mohawk  river,  three-fourths  of  a  mile  distant.  That  stream  is  the  largest 
tributary  of  the  Hudson.  It  flows  eastward,  with  a  rapid  current  most 
of  the  way,  from  Oneida  County,  in  the  interior  of  the  State  of  New 
York,  through  one  of  the  richest  agricultural  regions  in  the  world,  for 
about  one  hundred  and  thirty-five  miles,  and  enters  the  Hudson  in  four 


*  Cah-hoos,  an  Iroquois  word,  accortling  to  Braut,  tlie  gi-eat  Mohawk  cliief,  signifying  a  canoe 
falling. 


Jbi^vimi '■ 


THE    HUDSON.  109 


channels,  formed  by  three  islands,  named  respectively,  Van  Hover's,  Van. 
Schaick's,  or  Cohoes,  and  Green  or  Tibbett's  Islands.  Van  Schaick's 
alone,  which  is  almost  inaccessible  at  many  points,  because  of  its  high 
rocky  shores,  has  escaped  the  transforming  hand  of  iraprovement.  There, 
in  the  summer  of  1777,  General  Schuyler  cast  up  some  fortifications,  with 
the  determination  to  dispute  with  Burgoyne  the  passage  of  the  Mohawk. 
Faint  traces  of  those  intrenchments  may  yet  be  seen  ;  and,  in  the  spring  of 
1860,  a  large  zinc  cai'tridge-box  was  found  in  that  vicinity,  supposed  to 
have  been  left  when  General  Schuyler  moved  northward.  The  banks  of 
Van  Schaick's  are  steep,  a  forest  of  evergreens  clothes  a  large  portion  of  its 
surface,  and  only  a  solitary  barn  indicates  its  cognizance  by  man. 

Green  Island,  the  larger  of  the  three,  stretches  along  the  upper  part  of 
Troy,  and  is  a  theatre  of  industry  for  a  busy  population,  engaged  chiefly 
in  manufactures,  or  iu  employments  connected  with  railways.  There 
was  the  immense  establishment  of  Messrs.  Eaton,  Gilbert,  &  Co.  (after- 
ward destroyed  by  fire),  the  most  extensive  manufacturers  of  railway 
carriages,  omnibuses,  and  stage  coaches  in  the  United  States,  if  not  in  the 
world. 

The  scenery  about  the  mouth  of  the  Mohawk,  particulaiiy  in  the 
vicinity  of  Cohoes  Falls,  is  exceedingly  picturesque,  and  at  some  points 
really  grand.  A  highway  bridge,  nine  hundi'ed  feet  in  length,  and  a 
railway  viaduct  still  longer,  cross  the  river  over  the  rapids  a  short  distance 
below  the  falls.  From  the  former,  a  fine  distant  view  of  the  cataract  and 
the  rapids  below  may  be  obtained  ;  but  the  best  places  to  observe  them  in 
all  their  beauty  and  grandeur,  are  at  and  near  the  Cataract  House,  in  the 
village  of  Cohoes,  which  stands  upon  the  summit  verge  of  a  precipice  one 
hundred  and  seventy  feet  in  height.  Down  a  steep  slope  of  that  precipice, 
for  about  fifty  feet,  the  proprietor  has  constructed  a  fiight  of  steps,  and 
upon  the  top  of  a  broad  terrace  at  their  foot  he  has  planted  a  flower  garden, 
for  the  enjoyment  of  visitors.  Around  its  edge,  from  which  may  be 
obtained  a  view  of  the  entire  cataract,  is  a  railing  with  seats,  and  there 
the  visitor  may  contemplate  at  ease  the  wUd  scene  on  every  hand.  On 
his  left,  as  he  gazes  up  the  river,  rush  large  streams  of  water  from  the 
top  of  the  precipice  above  him,  in  almost  perpendicular  currents,  from  the 
waste-sluices  of  a  canal,  which,  commencing  at  a  dam  almost  two  miles 


110 


THE   HUDSON. 


above  the  falls,  conveys  water  to  numerous  mill-wheels  in  the  village. 
By  this  means  immense  hydi'aulic  power  is  obtained  and  distributed.* 


\IE\V  AT  C0H0E3  FALLS. 


The  width  of  the  grand  cataract  of  Cohoes  is  nine  hundred  feet,  and 
the  fall   seventy-eight  feet,    of    which   about  forty  are   perpendicular. 


*  The  water-power  at  CoUoes  was  mider  tlie  control  of  a  stock  company,  who  rented  it  to  the  pro- 
prietors of  mills  and  factories.  The  entire  fall  of  water  controlled  hy  the  company  was  one  hundred  and 
twenty  feet ;  and  the  minimum  supply  of  water  was  one  tliousaud  cubic  feet  each  second.  The  estimated 
value  of  the  various  ai-ticles  mauufactui'ed  tliere  at  that  time,  was  neaiiy  three  millions  of  dollars 
per  annum. 


THE   HUDSON.  Ill 


Below  the  fall,  the  water  rushes  over  a  rocky  bed,  in  foaming  rapids, 
between  high  banks,  to  the  plain,  where  the  islands  divide  it  into 
channels,  and  through  these  it  flows  gently  into  the  Hudson.  It  was  a 
beautiful  afternoon  in  early  spring  when  we  visited  the  falls.  The  water 
was  abundant,  for  the  snow  upon  the  hills  that  border  the  charming 
valley  of  the  Mohawk  was  rapiiHy  melting,  and  filled  the  river  to  the 
brim.  "We  never  saw  the  cataract  in  more  attractive  fona,  and  left  it 
with  reluctance  when  the  declining  sun  admonished  us  to  ride  back  to 
Waterford,  for  we  intended  to  cross  the  long  bridge  there,  pass  through 
Lansingburgh,  and  lodge  that  night  in  Troy.  It  was  just  at  sunset  when 
we  crossed  the  bridge  and  entered  the  beautiful  avenue  which  leads 
through  Lansingburgh,  into  the  heart  of  Troy.  Through  the  village  it  is 
shaded  with  stately  elms,  and  along  the  whole  distance  of  two  miles 
between  that  "  New  City"  of  the  past  and  modern  Troas,  it  follows  the 
bank  of  the  river  in  a  straight  line,  and  affords  a  most  delightful  drive  in 
summer. 

In  the  upper  suburb  of  Troy  we  came  to  a  mass  of  rock  rising  a  few 
yards  from  the  avenue  to  the  height  of  fifty  or  sixty  feet,  with  a  tall, 
crooked  sapling  shooting  up  from  its  summit,  which  had  been  placed 
there  for  a  flagstaS'.  The  classical  taste  which  gave  the  name  of  the  city 
built  where  the  dappled  heifer  of  Ilus  lay  down,  to  this  modem  town, 
when  it  was  little  more  than  a  hamlet,  and  which  dignified  the  irregular 
hill  that  overlooks  it  with  the  title  of  Mount  Ida  (called  Ida  Hill  by  the 
inhabitants),  named  this  rocky  peak  Mount  Olympus.  We  saw  nothing 
upon  its  "  awful  summit  "  to  remind  us  of  the  Thessalian  dwelling-place 
of  the  gods ;  and  the  apparition  nearest  to  that  of  "  Olympian  Jove  " 
(whom  the  artists  portrayed  in  human  form)  that  we  saw  in  the  fading 
twilight,  was  a  ragged  boy,  with  a  cigar  in  his  mouth,  vainly  endeavour- 
ing to  climb  the  sapling. 

The  peak  of  Olympus  was  once  much  higher.  It  has  been  carried 
away  from  time  to  time  to  furnish  materials  for  docks,  and  in  strengthening 
the  dam,  twelve  hundred  feet  in  length,  which  the  State  built  across  the 
Hudson  at  this  point  to  furnish  a  feeder  to  the  Champlain  Canal.  The 
water  at  the  dam  has  a  fall  of  about  twelve  feet,  and  at  the  east  end  is  a 
heavy  lock,  constructed  of  hewn  stone,  through  which  sloops  and  other 


112 


THE   HUDSON. 


vessels  are  taken  into  the  river  above,  and.  towed  by  steam-tugs,  as  we 
have  observed,  up  to  Lansingburgh  and  "Watcrford.  Just  above  the  dam, 
and  near  "Waterford,  there  is  a  communication  between  the  canal  and  the 
river,  and  many  loaded  boats  from  the  former  there  enter  the  latter,  pass 
through  the  lock,  and  are  towed,  some  to  Troy  and  Albany,  and  others  to 
New  York.  The  dam  also  furnishes  water  power  to  a  number  of  mills 
on  the  Troy  shore  below  it,  into  which  grain  is  taken  from  vessels  lying 
at  the  docks,  by  means  of  "elevators"  worked  by  the  water  wheels. 
Those  form  a  striking  feature  in  the  scene  below  the  dam. 

From  the  look  may  be  obtained  an  excellent  view  of  the  river  below. 


lOCK  AT  STATE  DAM,  TROY, 

with  the  last  of  the  bridges  that  then  spanned  the  Hudson.  Since  then 
a  railway-bridge  has  been  thrown  across  it  at  Albany,  six  miles  below. 
Glimpses  of  Troy,  and  "Watervliet  or  West  Troy  opposite,  and  of  the 
Katzbergs,  thirty  miles  distant,  were  obtained  from  the  same  point  of 
view.  The  Troy  Bridge  was  sixteen  hundred  feet  in  length,  and 
connected  Green  Island  with  the  main,  having  a  draw  at  the  eastern  end 
for  vessels  to  pass  through.  It  was  used  as  a  public  highway  in  crossing 
the  river,  and  also  as  a  viaduct  of  the  Eensselaer  and  Saratoga  Eailway. 
It  was  built  of  timber,  was  closely  covered,  and  rested  upon  heavy  stone 
piers.  It  crossed  where  formerly  lay  a  group  of  beautiful  little  islands, 
when  Troy  was  in  its  infancy.     They  have  almost  disappeared,  except 


THE    HUDSON.  113 


the  larger  one,  whicli  is  tisected  by  tlio  bridge.  Among  these  islands 
shad  and  sturgeon,  fish  that  abound  in  every  part  of  the  river  below,  were 
caught  iu  large  quantities,  but  they  are  seldom  seen  there  now. 

Troy,  the  capital  of  Rensselaer  County,  is  six  miles  above  Albany,  at 
the  head  of  tide-water,  one  hundred  and  iifty-onc  miles  from  the  city  of 
New  York.  It  is  a  port  of  entry,  and  its  commerce  is  veiy  extensive  for 
an  inland  town.  It  is  seated  upon  a  plain  between  the  foot  of  Mount  Ida 
and  the  river.  It  has  crept  up  that  hill  in  some  places,  but  very 
cautiously,  because  the  earth  is  unstable,  and  serious  avalanches  have 
from  time  to  time  occurred.  Its  site  was  originally  known  as  Ferry 
Hook,  then  Ashley's  Ferry,*  and  finally  Vandcrlieydcn,  the  name  of  the 
first  proprietor  of  the  soil  on  which  Troy  stands,  after  it  was  conveyed  in 
fee  from  the  Patroon  of  Rcnsshicrwyck,  in  the  year  1720.  After  the 
llevolution  the  spot  attracted  some  attention  as  an  eligible  village  site. 
Town  lots  were  laid  out  there  in  the  summer  of  1787,  and  two  years 
afterward  the  freeholders  of  the  embryo  city,  at  a  meeting  iu  Albany, 
resolved  that  "  in  future  it  should  be  called  and  known  by  the  name  of 
Troy."  At  the  same  time,  with  the  prescience  of  observing  men,  they 
said — "  It  may  not  be  too  sanguine  to  expect,  at  no  very  distant  period, 
to  see  Troy  as  famous  for  her  trade  and  navigation  as  many  of  our  first 
towns."     It  was  incorporated  a  village  in  1801,  and  a  city  in  1816. 

From  the  beginning  Troy  was  a  rival  of  Lansingburgh.  It  was  settled 
chiefly  by  enterprising  New  England  people.  They  perceived  the 
advantages  of  their  location  at  the  head  of  tide-water  and  sloop  naviga- 
tion, between  two  fine  streams  (Poesten  Kill  and  "Wynant's  Kill)  that 
flow  in  wild  cascades  from  Mount  Ida  and  its  connections,   affording 


*  Stephen  Ashley  kept  the  fii-st  tavern  at  the  ferry,  in  tlxe  fanu-house  of  Matthias  Vanderheyden,  on 
the  south-east  corner  of  Elver  and  Division  Streets.  It  is  the  oldest  honse  in  Ti'oy,  having  been  built 
as  early  as  1752.    On  the  front  of  the  house,  between  the  two 

windows  ou  the  left,  was  a  brick,  on  which  was  cut  "  d  V  H.  A.D.  "^U-rr^., 

1752."  The  initials  stood  for  Derick  (Richard)  Vunderhej'den. 
The  D  was  reversed.  Between  the  second  window  on  the  left  and 
the  door  was  another  brick  inscribed  "  M  V  H.  1752."  These  were 
the  initials  of  Matthias  Vanderhe5*den.    South  of  the  window  on 

the  right,  and  a  little  above  it,  was  anotlier  brick  inscribed  "  I  V  H.  

1752."    These  were  the  initials  of  Jacob  "N'anderheyden.    Matthias  vanderhevden  HOUSE, 

occupied  this,  and  tlie  other  two  built  houses  elsewhere  on  the 

plot.    Asliley  afterward  kept  an  inn  at  the  comer  of  River  and  Ferrj-  Streets.    On  his  sign  was  a  por- 
trait of  Washington,  and  the  words  "  Wliy  here's  Ashley's." 


lU 


THE   HUDSON. 


extensive  water  power.  After  a  hard  struggle,  Troy  was  made  tlie  county- 
seat,  and  the  court-liousc  was  erected  there,  and  from  tliat  time  the 
growth  of  Lansingburgh  was  slow,  whilst  Troy  increased  with  wonderful 
rapidity.  The  former  had  0,000  inhabitants  in  1860,  and  the  latter 
almost  50,000.  It  has  always  been  conspicuous  for  well-directed  and 
associated  public  spirit,  and  its  institutions  of  learning  are  among  the 
best  in  the  land.  The  most  noted  of  these  are  the  Eensselaer  Institute, 
founded  and  endowed  by  the  late  Stephen  Van  Eensselaer  of  the  Manor, 


EENSSELAEE  AND  BAEATOGA  EAIllVAr  BKIOGE. 


the  Troy  Female  Seminary,  and  the  Troy  University.  The  latter  was 
established  under  the  auspices  of  the  Methodist  denomination,  but  the 
funds  for  the  building  were  liberally  subscribed  by  men  of  various  sects. 
It  stands  upon  Mount  Ida,  and  is  the  most  conspicuous  object  in  a  view 
of  the  city  seen  from  any  point.  In  its  immediate  vicinity  are  beautiful 
residences,  which  command  extensive  and  interesting  pictures  of  town 
and  country.  In  their  chaste  and  modest  style  of  architecture,  they 
present  striking  contrasts  to  the  more  meretricious  "Byzantine  style"  of 
the  Universitv. 


THE   HUDSON. 


115 


Opposite  Troy  is  the  bustling  Tillage  of  West  Troy  (formerly  Water- 
vlict),  -rrlth  a  population  of  about  9,000  in  1860.  At  the  south  end  of 
the  village,  and  occupying  a  front  of  a  quarter  of  a  mile  along  the 
west  bank  of  the  Hudson,  is  the  United  States  Military  establishment 
called  the  "Watervliet  Arsenal.  It  was  one  of  the  largest  of  the  sis 
principal  establishments  then  belonging  to  the  United  States,  where, 
under  the  direction  of  the  Ordnance  Department,  were  manufactured  the 
arms  and  munitions  of  war  required  for  the  use  of  the  army  and  the 


VIEW  Oi"  TBUX  i'ilUM  ilUUSX  iilA. 


militia  before  the  Civil  "War.  About  twelve  acres  of  land  were  purchased 
at  that  point  by  the  United  States,  in  1813,  for  arsenal  purposes,  and  the 
group  of  buildings  seen,  in  the  sketch  was  erected.  The  grounds  com- 
prised about  one  hundred  acres,  part  covered  with  necessary  buildings  and 
a  parade,  and  the  remainder  was  under  cultivation.  About  two  hundred 
yards  west  of  the  highway,  the  Erie  Canal  passed  through  the  grounds, 
and  was  spanned  by  a  picturesque  iron  bridge  near  the  officers'  quarters. 
Along  the  river  front  was  a  double  row  of  stately  elm  trees,  whose 
branches  form  a  leafy  arch  over  the  highway  in  summer.     From  these  the 


116 


THE    HUDSON. 


grccn-sward  bank  slopes  gently  toward  the  river,  and  afiords  a  delightful 
promenade  on  summer  afternoons."^' 

The  highway  along  the  plain  from  "West  Albany  is  a  iine  macadamised 


V>irEU   STAlta  Ai:iL;«.U.   ax    U  ..li:.K\LIL.X. 


road,   with  the  Eric  Canal,  the  Hudson,   and  the   amphitheatre  of  the 
Greenbush  heights  on  the  left.     The  hills  on  the  right  are"  near,   and 


^  I  was  intlfblcd  to  llic  cuui-lesy  of  Licutenuut  Geurgo  T.  BaLli,  llicn  statiuiied  there,  for  the 
following  facts: — "As  tJie  necessity  for  gi'eater  manufacturing  facihtiea  arose,  additional  lands  were 
purchased,  and  extensive  shops,  storehouses,  tiiuber-sheds,  magazines,  barracks  and  quai'ters,  were 
erected  from  time  to  time,  until  at  the  present  (1860),  tlie  real  estate  and  the  improvements  are  valued 
at  500,000  dollars,  and  the  military  stores  and  supplies  collected,  in  the  various  buildings,  at  1,500,000. 
The  principal  operations  canied  on  are  the  manufacture  of  hea\'j"  artillery  carriages  for  tlie  sea-coast 
forts,  with  all  the  requisite  implements  and  equipments  ;  carnages  for  siege  trains  and  field  batteries, 
with  their  equipments  and  harness ;  all  machines  used  in  transporting  and  repaii'ing  artillery ;  ammu- 
nition of  all  kinds  for  sea-coast,  siege,  and  field  guns,  and  for  small  arms,  and  the  repair  and  preser^-ation 
of  the  large  quantity  of  material  of  war  in  store.  The  shops  comprise  all  requisite  facilities  for  the 
various  mechanics  employed,  as  well  as  a  conveniently  arranged  and  roomy  laborator)-.  The  motive 
power  is  water,  furnished  by  the  Eiie  Canal.  Under  ordinani'  circumstances  from  110  to  150  workmen 
are  employed,  but,  when  the  exigencies  of  the  service  demand  it,  500  to  600  can  easily  be  accommodated. 
The  establishment  is  under  the  control  of  a  field  officer  of  the  ordnance  department,  assisted  by  subalterns 
of  the  same,  a  militaiy  storekeeper  and  paymaster,  who  is  a  civilian,  and  the  requisite  master,  work- 
men. &c.  Forty  enlisted  Ordnance  men  are  at  present  stationed  at  the  post,  who  perfoiin  tlie  necessaiy 
guard  duty  and  drills,  and  are  at  otlier  times  variously  engaged  in  out-of-door  and  nieclianical  employ- 
ments. The  United  States  have  exclusive  control  of  the  gi-ounds  included  within  the  arsenal  enclosure, 
the  State  exercising  onlj'  concurrent  jurisdiction  in  civil  actions  and  criminal  cases." 


THE    HUDSON. 


117 


pleasant  mansions  and  fertile  acres  are  seen  on  every  side.  There  is  a 
house  a  mile  and  a  half  below  the  arsenal,  scarcely  visible  from  the  road 
because  of  trees  and  shrubbery  which  conceal  it,  and,  when  seen,  it  would 
not  attract  special  attention,  excepting  for  the  extreme  plainness  and 
antiquated  style  of  its  architecture.  A  pleasant  lane  leads  to  it  fi-om  the 
canal,  and  the  margin  of  the  sloping  lawn  on  its  river  front,  over  which 
stately  elms  cast  their  shadows,  is  swept  by  the  Hudson's  tide.  It  is 
famous  in  colonial  history  as  the  residence  of  Colonel  Peter  Schuyler,  of 


fcCUL'iLtK    HULtoi:   AT    LilE   JLAJb. 


the  Flats,  the  first  Mayor  of  Albany,  and  who,  as  Indian  Commissioner, 
in  after  years  took  four  kings  or  saolicms,  of  the  Mohawks,  to  England, 
and  presented  them  at  the  court  of  Queen  Anne.  After  his  death,  his 
son  Philip,  the  well-beloved  of  the  Mohawks,  who  married  his  sweet 
cousin  Katrina — the  "Aunt  Schuyler"  immortalised  by  Mrs.  Grant,  of 
Laggan,  in  her  charming  pictures  of  "Albany  Society  a  Hundred  Tears 
Ago " — resided  there,  and  with  ample  resources  dispensed  hospitality 
with  a  bounteous  hand.  And  yet.  this  is  not  the  identical  house  in  whicli 
the  mayor  lived,  and  his  son  Philip  entertained  friends  and  strangers,  but 
the  one  built  upon  its  ruins,  in  the  same  style,  the  summer  days  of  which 


118  THE    HUDSON. 


are  so  charmingly  portrayed  by  Mrs.  Grant.  The  old  one  was  consumed 
by  fire  in  the  summer  of  1759,  when  Philip  had  been  dead  eighteen 
months,  and  "  Aunt  Schuyler,"  his  widow,  whose  waist  he  spanned  with 
his  hands  when  they  were  married  forty  years  before,  had  grown  to  such 
enormous  dimensions,  that  a  chair  was  made  for  her  special  use.  In 
that  chair  she  was  seated,  under  the  cherry-trees  in  the  lane,  one  hot  day 
in  August,  when  the  eminent  Colonel  John  Bradstrcet,  riding  up,  gave 
her  the  first  intimation  that  her  house  was  on  fire.  With  calmness  she 
kept  her  seat,  and  gave  directions  to  her  servants  and  neighbours  how  to 
check  the  flames,  and  to  save  her  most  valued  articles.  Before  evening 
the  blackened  brick  walls  were  all  that  were  left  of  that  pleasant  mansion. 
Aunt  Schuyler  had  a  larger  house  in  Albany,  but  she  took  shelter  with 
her  husband's  deaf  brother  Peter,  who  lived  upon  the  hills  near  by. 

Intelligence  of  the  disaster  brought  the  people  from  all  quarters.  They 
testified  their  love  for  "Aunt  Schuyler  "  by  offering  their  services.-  In  a 
few  days  materials  for  a  new  house  were  collected.  Colonel  Bradstrcet 
sent  up  some  of  the  king's  troops  then  stationed  in  Albany  to  assist  in 
building,  and  the  part  of  the  house  seen  on  the  right  in  the  picture,  was 
completed  for  use  before  the  winter  set  in.  Over  the  yawning  cellars  of 
the  late  mansion  a  broad  wooden  bridge  was  built,  furnished  with  seats 
like  a  portico.  "This,"  says  Mrs.  Grant,  "with  the  high  walls  of  the 
ancient  house,  which  were  a  kind  of  screen  before  the  new  one,  gave  the 
whole  the  appearance  of  an  ancient  ruin."  ■■'  Aunt  Schuyler  removed 
to  her  house  in  Albany,  and  leased  the  homestead ;  and,  a  few  years 
later,  the  present  house  was  built.  In  it  a  part  of  the  old  walls  may  be 
seen.  It  was  owned  when  I  visited  it  by  Stephen  R.  Schuyler,  Esq.,  a 
descendant  of  the  mayor.  His  brother,  John  C.  Schuyler,  living  upon 
the  gentle  hills  near  by,  possessed  a  finely-executed  portrait  of  that 
earliest  chief  magistrate  of  the  city  of  Albany. 

As  we  approach  Albany  from  the  Flats,  and  reach  the  boundaries  of 
"the  Colonic,"!  the  river  shores  are  seen  covered  with  huge  piles  of 
lumber,  and  lined  with  vessels  of  almost  every  kind.  The  ear  catches 
the  distant  hum  of  a  large  town  and  the  jangle  of  steamboat  bells,  while 

*  "  MtMuoirs  of  an  American  L:i<Iy,"'  by  Jli-i.  Gran^  <if  La^-gan. 

t  So  named  because  it  was  the  seat  of  the  ancient  colony  of  Rensselaerwyck. 


THE   HUDSON. 


119 


the  city  itself,  built  upon  hills  and  slopes,  is  more  than  half  concealed  by 
the  lofty  trees  which  surround  the  manor  house  of  the  Yan  Eensselaer 
family  in  the  northern  part  of  the  city.  This  is  one  of  the  most 
attractive  town  residences  in  the  State.  The  mansion,  erected  in  1765, 
and  recently  somewhat  modified  in  external  appearance,  stands  within  a 
park  of  many  acres,  beautified  by  the  hand  of  taste.  It  is  adorned  with 
llowers  and  shrubbery,  and  its  pleasant  -sralks  are  shaded  by  grand  old 
trees,  some  of  which  -were,  doubtless,  planted  or  -were  forest  saplings,  two 


VAN  RENSSELAER  MANOR  IIOISE- 


hundred  years  or  more  ago,  -when  the  first  PatrooiCs  mansion,  with  its 
reed-covered  roof,  was  erected  there.  Through  the  grounds  flows  Mill 
Creek,  a  clear  stream  that  comes  down  from  the  hills  on  the  west,  through 
the  once  sweet  vale  of  Tivoli,  where,  until  the  construction  of  a  railway 
effaced  it,  the  music  of  a  romantic  cascade — the  Falls  of  Tivoli — was 
heard. 

The  reader  may  inquire  why  the  proprietor  of  this  estate  was  called 
the  Patroon,  and  invested  with  manorial  title  and  privileges.  History 
furnishes  an  answer  in  this  wise : — The  Dutch  "West  India  Company, 
having  made  all  proper  an-angements  for  colonising  Ifew  Netherlands,  as 


v; 


120 


THE   HUDSON. 


New  York  was  then  called,  passed  a  charter  of  privileges  and  exemptions 
in  1G29,  for  the  encouragement  of  Tairoons,  or  patrons,  to  make  settle- 
ments. It  was  provided  ttat  every  Patroon,  to  whom  privileges  and 
exemptions  should  be  granted,  should,  within  four  years  after  the 
establishment  of  a  colony,  have  there,  as  permanent  residents,  at  least 
fifty  persons  over  fifteen  years  of  age,  one-fourth  of  whom  should  be 
located  within  the  iirst  year.  Such  privileges  were  granted  to  Killian 
Van  Rensselaer,  a  pearl  merchant  of  Amsterdam,  and  one  of  the  directors 
of  the  "West  India  Company,  and  by  his  direction  the  commissary  and 
under  commissary  of  Fort  Orange,  around  whose  site  the  city  of  Albany 
now  stands,  piu'cbased  of  the  Indians  a  tract  of  land  in  that  vicinity. 
Another  district  was  afterwards  purchased,  and  Killian  Van  Ecnsselacr 
and  three  others  became  the  proprietors  of  a  tract  of  land,  twenty-four 
miles  long,  upon  each  side  of  the  Hudson,  and  forty-eight  miles  broad, 
containing  over  700,000  acres  of  land,  and  comprising  the  present 
counties  of  Albany,  Rensselaer,  and  a  part  of  Columbia.  Van  Rensselaer 
held  two  shares,  and  the  others  one  share  each.  They  were  his  equals  in 
piivileges  and  exemptions,  except  in  the  title  of  Patroon,  which,  with  all 
the  feudal  honours,  was  vested  in  him  alone,  the  partners  binding  them- 
selves to  do  fealty  and  homage  for  the  fief  on  his  demise,  in  the  name  and 
on  behalf  of  his  son  and  heirs.  The  manor  did  not  become  the  sole 
property  of  the  Van  Rensselaer  family  until  1685. 

The  Patroon  was  invested  with  power  to  administer  civil  and  criminal 
justice,  in  person  or  by  deputy,  withiu  his  domain,  and,  to  some  extent, 
ho  was  a  sort  of  autocrat.  These  powers  were  abolished  when  the  English 
took  possession  of  the  province  iu  1664,  and  with  it  fell  many  of  the 
special  privileges,  but,  by  the  English  law  of  primogeniture,  that  princely 
domain,  farmed  out  to  many  tenants,  remained  in  the  family  until  the 
Revolution  in  1775,  and  the  title  of  Patroon  was  held  by  the  late  General 
Stephen  Van  Rensselaer,  until  his  death,  early  in  1840,  when  it  expired. 
A  great  portion  of  the  manor  has  passed  out  of  the  hands  of  tlio  Van 
Rensselaer  family. 


CHxVPTEE    YII. 


HE  grounds  around  Van  Rensselaer  Manor  House  extend 
from  Broadway  to  the  river,  and  embrace  a  large 
garden  and  conservatory.  There  in  the  midst  of 
rural  scenery,  the  sounds  of  a  swift-running  brook, 
and  almost  the  quietude  of  a  sylvan  retreat,  the  "lord 
of  the  manor  of  Eensselaerwyck,"  the  lineal  descendant  of 
Killian,  the  pearl  merchant,  and  first  Patroon,  was  living  when 
our  sketch  was  made  in  elegant  but  unostentatious  style — a  simple 
"'-  Republican,  without  the  feudal  title  of  his  progenitors,  except 
by  courtesy.  Within  the  mansion  arc  collected  some  exquisite  works  of 
Art,  and  family  portraits  extending  in  regular  order  back  to  the  first 
Patroon.  At  the  head  of  tlie  great  staircase  leading  from  the  spacious 
hall  to  the  chambers  was  a  portion  of  the 
illuminated  window  which,  for  one  hun- 
dred and  ninety  years,  occupied  a  place 
in  the  old  Dutch  Church  that  stood  in 
the  middle  of  State  Street,  at  its  inter- 
section by  Broadway.  It  bears  the  arms 
of  the  Van  Rensselaer  family,  which  were 
placed  in  the  church  by  the  son  of 
Killian. 

That  old  church,  a  sketch  of  which, 
with  the  appearance  of  the  neighbourhood 
at  the  time  of  its  demolition  in  1805,  is 
seen  in  our  picture,  was  a  curiousl}- 
arranged  place  of  worship.  It  was  built 
of  stone,  in  1715,  over  a  smaller  one 
erected  in  1656,  in  which  the  congrega- 
tion continued  to  worship,  until  the  new  one  was  roofed.  There  was  an 
interruption  in  the  stated  worship  for  only  three  Sabbaths.     It  had  a  low 


RENSSELAER'S  ARMS 


122 


THE   HUDSON. 


gallery,  and  the  huge  stove  used  in  heating  the  huilding  ivas  placed  iipon 
a  platform  so  high,  that  the  sexton  went  upon  it  from  the  gallery  to 
kindle  the  fire,  implying  a  belief  in  tliose  days  that  heated  air  descended, 
instead  of  ascending,  as  we  are  now  taught  by  the  philosophers.  Tlic 
pulpit  was  made  of  carved  oak,  octagonal  in  form,  and  in  front  of  it  was  a 
bracket,  on  which  the  minister  placed  his  hour-glass,  when  he  commenced 
preaching.  From  the  pulpit  shone  in  succession  those  lights  of  the 
Reformed  Dutch  Church  in  America,  Dominies  Schaats,  Delius,  the  land 
speculator,   Lydius,  Vandriesscn,  Van   Schie,  Frelinghuysen,  AVcstcrlo, 


OLD  DUTCH  CHURCH  IN  ALBANY. 


and  Johnson.     And  from  it  the  Gospel  is  still  preached  in  Albany.    With 
its  bracket,  it  occupies  a  place  in  the  IS'orth  Dutch  Church,  in  that  city. 

The  bell-rope  of  the  old  church  hung  down  in  the  centre  of  the  building, 
and  upon  that  cord  tradition  has  suspended  many  a  tale  of  trouble  for 
Mynheer  Brower,  one  of  its  sextons,  who  lived  in  North  Pearl  Street. 
He  went  to  the  church  every  night  at  eight  o'clock,  pursuant  to  orders, 
to  ring  the  "  suppawn  bell,"  This  was  the  signal  for  the  inhabitants  to 
eat  their  "  suppawn,"  or  hasty -pudding,  and  prepare  for  bed.    It  was 


THE    HUDSON.  123 


equivalent  in  its  office  to  the  old  English  curfew  bell.  On  these  occasions 
the  wickecl  boys  would  sometimes  tease  the  old  bell-ringer.  Thoy  would 
slip  stealthily  into  the  church  while  he  was  there  with  his  dim  lantern, 
unlock  the  side  door,  hide  in  some  dark  corner,  and  when  the  old  man 
was  fairly  seated  at  home,  and  had  his  pipe  lighted  for  a  last  smoke,  they 
would  ring  the  bell  furiously.  Down  to  the  old  church  the  sexton  would 
hasten,  the  boys  would  slip  out  at  the  side  door  before  his  arrival,  and  the 
old  man  would  return  home  thoughtfully,  musing  upon  the  probability 
of  invisible  hands  pulling  at  his  bell-rope — those 

"  People— ah,  the  people. 
They  that  dwell  up  ia  the  steeple 

All  alone ; 
And  who,  tolling,  tolliug,  tolling, 

In  that  muffled  monotone, 
Feel  a  glory  in  so  rolling 

On  the  human  heart  a  stone ; 

They  are  neither  man  nor  woman, 

Thej'  are  neither  brute  nor  human. 

They  are  ghouls ! " 

Albany  wore  a  quaint  aspect  until  the  beginning  of  the  present  century, 
on  account  of  the  predominance  of  steep-roofed  houses,  with  their  terraced 
gables  to  the  street.  A  fair  specimen  is  given  in  our  Street  View  in 
Ancient  Albany,  which  shows  the  appearance  of  the  town  at  the  intersec- 
tion of  North  Pearl  and  State  Streets,  sixty  years  ago.  The  house  at  the 
nearer  corner  was  built  as  a  parsonage  for  the  Eev.  Gideon  Schaats,  who 
arrived  in  Albany  in  1652.'  The  materials  were  imported  from  Holland, 
— bricks,  tdes,  iron,  and  wood-work, — and  were  brought,  with  the  church 
bell  and  pulpit,  in  1657.  "  When  I  was  quite  a  lad,"  says  a  late  writer, 
"  I  visited  the  house  with  my  mother,  who  was  acquainted  with  the 
father  of  Balthazar  Lydius,  the  last  proprietor  of  the  mansion.  To  my 
eyes  it  appeared  like  a  palace,  and  I  thought  the  pewter  plates  in  a  corner 
cupboard  were  solid  silver,  they  glittered  so.  The  partitions  were  made 
of  mahogany,  and  the  exposed  beams  were  ornamented  with  carvings  in 
high  relief,  representing  the  vine  and  fruit  of  the  grape.  To  show  the 
relief  more  perfectly,  the  beams  were  painted  white.  Balthazar  was  an 
eccentric  old  bachelor,  and  was  the  terror  of  all  the  boys.  Strange 
stories,  almost  as  dreadful  as  those  which  cluster  around  the  name  of 
Bluebeard,  were  told  of  his  fierceness  on  some  occasions ;  and  the  urchins. 


124 


THE    HUDSON. 


when  they  saw  him  in  the  streets,  would  give  liim  the  whole  sidc-wallc, 
for  he  made  them  think  of  the  ogi-o,  growling  out  his 

'  Fee,  fo,  film, 
I  smell  the  blood  of  an  Englishman.' 

He  was  a  tall,  spare  Dutchman,  with  a  hullet  head,  sprinkled  with  thin 
white  hair  in  his  latter  years.  He  was  fond  of  his  pipe  and  his  bottle, 
and  gloried  in  his  celibacy,  until  his  life  was  '  in  the  sere  and  yellow  leaf.' 


IL     i     \.ubiM 


Then  he  gave  a  pint  of  gin  for  a  squaw  (an  Indian  woman),  and  calling 
her  his  wife,  lived  with  her  as  such  until  his  death." 

On  the  opposite  corner  was  seen  an  elm-tree,  yet  standing  in  I8G0,  but 
of  statelier  proportions,  which  was  planted  more  than  a  hundred  years 
before  by  Philip  Livingston,  one  of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration  of 
Independence,  whoso  dwelling  was  next  to  the  corner.  It  was  a  monu- 
ment to  the  planter,  more  truly  valued  of  the  Albanians  in  the  licats  of 
summer,  than  would  be  the  costliest  pile  of  brass  or  marble. 

Further  up  the  street  is  seen  a  large  building,  with  two  gables,  whicli 
was  known  as  the  Yanderhcyden  Palace.     It  is  a  good  specimen  of  tho 


THE    HUDSON. 


125 


external  appearance  of  the  better  class  of  houses  erected  by  the  Dutch  in 
Albany.  It  was  built  in  1725,  by  Johannes  Beeknian,  one  of  the  old 
burghers  of  that  city  ;  and  was  purchased,  in  1778,  by  one  of  the  Vander- 
heydens  of  Troy,  who,  for  many  years,  lived  there  in  the  style  of  the  old 
Dutch  aristocracy.  On  account  of  its  size,  it  was  dignified  with  the  title 
of  palace.  It  figures  in  "Washington  Irving's  story  of  Doljih  Heyliger,  in 
"  Eracebridgc  Hall,"  as  the  residence  of  Ilccr  Anthony  YandcrhcyJcn  ; 


\  A.MtJ^KilL-Yllt.N    P.^LACi:. 


and  when  Mr.  Irving  transformed  the  old  farmhouse  of  Van  Tassel  into 
his  elegant  Dutch  cottage  at  "  Sunnyside,"  he  made  the  southern  gable 
an  exact  imitation  of  that  of  the  palace  in  Albany.  And  the  iron  vane, 
in  the  form  of  a  horse  at  full  speed,  that  turned  for  a  century  upon  one  of 
tlie  gables  of  the  Yanderheyden  Palace,  now  occupies  the  peak  of  that 
southern  gable  at  delightful  "  Sunnyside." 

Kalm,  the  Swedish  traveller,  who  visited  Albany  in  1748  and  1749, 
says  in  his  Journal, — "  The  houses  in  this  town  are  very  neat,  and  partly 
built  with  stones,  covered  with  shingles  of  the  white  pine.  Some  are 
slated  \\ith  tiles  from  Holland.     Most  of  the  houses  arc  built  in  the  old 


126  THE   HUDSON. 


way,  with  the  gable-tnd  toward  the  street ;  a  few  excepted,  which  were 

lately  built  in  the  manner  now  used The  gutters  on  the  roofs 

reach  almost  to  the  middle  of  the  street.  This  preserves  the  walls  from 
being  damaged  by  the  rain,  but  it  is  extremely  disagreeable  in  rainy 
weather  for  the  people  in  the  streets,  there  being  hardly  any  means  for 
avoiding  the  water  from  the  gutters.  The  street  doors  are  generally  in 
the  middle  of  the  houses,  and  on  both  sides  are  seats,  on  which,  during 
fair  weather,  the  people  spend  almost  the  whole  day,  especially  on  those 
which  are  in  the  shadow  of  the  houses.  In  the  evening  these  seats  are 
covered  with  people  of  both  sexes;  but  this  is  rather  troublesome,  as  those 
who  pass  by  are  obliged  to  greet  everybody,  unless  they  will  shock  the 
politeness  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  town." 

Kalm  appears  to  have  had  some  unpleasant  experiences,  in  Albany,  and 
in  his  Journal  gave  his  opinion  very  freely  concerning  the  inhabitants. 
"  The  avarice  and  selfishness  of  the  inhabitants  of  Albany,"  he  says,  "  are 
very  well  known  throughout  all  North  America.  If  a  Jew,  who  under- 
stands the  art  of  getting  forward  perfectly  well,  should  settle  amongst 
them,  they  would  not  fail  to  ruin  him ;  for  this  reason,  no  one  comes  to 
this  place  without  the  most  pressing  necessity."  He  complains  that  he 
"was  obliged  to  pay  for  everything  twice,  thrice,  and  four  times  as  dear 
as  in  any  other  part  of  North  America"  which  he  had  passed  through. 
If  he  wanted  any  help,  he  had  to  pay  "exorbitant  prices  for  their 
services,"  and  yet  he  says  he  found  some  exceptions  among  them.  After 
due  reflection,  he  came  to  the  following  conclusion  respecting  "  the 
origin  of  the  inhabitants  of  Albany  and  its  neighbourhood.  "Whilst  the 
Dutch  possessed  this  country,  and  intended  to  people  it,  the  government 
took  up  a  pack  of  vagabonds,  of  which  they  intended  to  clear  the  country, 
and  sent  them,  along  with  a  number  of  other  settlors,  to  this  province. 
The  vagabonds  were  sent  far  from  the  other  colonists,  upon  the  borders 
toward  the  Indians  and  other  enemies  ;  and  a  few  honest  families  were 
persuaded  to  go  witli  them,  in  order  to  keep  them  in  bounds.  I  cannot 
in  any  otlier  way  account  for  the  difference  between  the  inhabitants  of 
Albany  and  the  other  descendants  of  so  respectable  a  nation  as  the 
Dutch." 

Albany  was  settled  by  the  Dutch,  and  is  the  oldest  of  the  permanent 


THE   HUDSON. 


127 


European  settlements  in  the  United  States.  Hudson  passed  its  site  in  the 
Half-Moon,  in  the  early  autumns  of  1609  ;  and  tlie  next  year  Dutch 
navigators  built  trading-houses  there,  to  traffic  for  furs  'U'ith  the  Indians. 
In  1614  they  erected  a  stockade  fort  on  an  island  near.  It  was  swept 
away  by  a  spring  freshet  in  1617.  Another  was  built  on  the  main  :  it 
was  abandoned  in  1623,  and  a  stronger  one  erected  in  what  is  now 
Broadway,  below  State  Street.  This  was  furnished  witli  eight  cannon 
loaded  with  stones,  and  was  named  Fort  Orange,  in  honour  of  the  then 
Stadtholdor  of  Holland.  Down  to  the  period  of  the  intercolonial  wars, 
the  settlement  and  the  city  were  known  as  Fort  Orange  by  the  French  in 
Canada.  Families  settled  there  in  1630,  and  for  awhile  the  place  was 
called  Beverwyek.     "When  James,  Duke  of  York  and  Albany  (brother  to 


ts^  >ivr; 


rORT  rEEDEKlCK. 


Charles  II.),  came  into"  possession  of  Kew  iN'ethcrland,  Xew  Amsterdam 
was  named  New  York,  and  Orange,  or  Bcverwyck,  was  called  Albany. 

In  1647  a  fort,  named  'W'illiamstadt,  was  erected  upon  the  hill  at  the 
head  of  State  Street,  very  near  the  site  of  the  State  Capitol,  and  the  city 
was  enclosed  by  a  line  of  defences  in  septangular  form.  In  1683  the 
little  trading  post,  having  grown  first  to  a  hamlet  and  then  to  a  large 
village,  was  incorporated  a  city,  and  Peter  Schuyler,  already  mentioned 
(son  of  the  first  of  that  name  who  came  to  America),  was  chosen  its  first 
mayor.  Out  of  the  manor  of  Eensselaerwyck  a  strip  of  land,  a  mile  wide, 
extending  from  the  Hudson  at  the  town,  thirteen  miles  back,  was  granted 
to  the  city,  but  the  title  to  all  the  remainder  of  the  soil  of  that  broad 
domain  was  confirmed  to  the  Patroon.  "^'hen,  toward  the  middle  of  the 
last  century,  the  province  was  menaced  by  the  French  and  Indians,  a 
strong  quadrangular  fort,  built  of  stone,  was  erected  upon  the  site  of  that 


128  TilK    HUDSON. 


of  William stadt.  Within  the  heavy  walls,  which  had  strong  bastions  at 
the  four  corners,  was  a  stone  building  for  the  officers  and  soldiers.  It 
was  named  Fort  Frederick ;  but  its  situation  was  so  insecure,  owing  to 
higher  hills  in  the  rear,  from  which  an  enemy  might  attack  it,  it  was  not 
regarded  as  of  much  value  by  Abercrombie  and  others  during  the 
campaigns.of  the  Seven  Years'  War.  From  that  period  until  tlie  present, 
Albany  has  been  growing  more  and  more  cosmopolitan  iu  its  population, 
until  now  very  little  of  the  old  Dutch  element  is  distinctly  perceived. 
The  style  of  its  architecture  is  changed,  and  very  few  of  tlie  buildings 
erected  in  the  last  century  and  before,  are  remaining. 

Among  the  most  interesting  of  these  relics  of  the  past  is  the  mansion 
erected  by  General  Philip  Schuyler,  at  about  the  time  wlicn  the  Yan 
Rensselaer  Manor  House  was  built.  It  stands  in  the  southern  part  of  the 
city,  at  the  head  of  Schuyler  Street,  and  is  a  very  fine  specimen  of  the 
domestic  architecture  of  the  country  at  that  period.  It  is  entered  at  tlie 
front  by  an  octagonal  vestibule,  richly  ornamented  within.  The  rooms 
arc  spacious,  with  high  ceilings,  and  wainscoted.  The  chimnc3'-pieccs  in 
some  of  the  rooms  are  finely  wrought,  and  ornamented  with  carvings  from 
mantel  to  ceiling.  The  outhouses  were  spacious,  and  tlic  grounds  around 
the  mansion,  so  late  as  18G0,  occupied  an  entire  scjuare  within  the  city. 
Its  site  was  well  chosen,  for  even  now,  surrounded  as  it  is  by  the  city,  it 
commands  a  most  remarkable  prospect  of  tlie  Hudson  and  the  adjacent 
country.  Below  it  are  the  slopes  and  plain  toward  the  river,  which  once 
composed  the  magnificent  lawn  in  front  of  the  general's  mansion  ;  further 
on  is  a  dense  portion  of  the  city ;  but  looking  over  all  the  mass  of  buildings 
and  shipping,  the  eyes  take  in  much  of  the  fine  county  of  Rensselaer,  on 
the  opposite  side  of  the  river,  and  a  view  of  the  Hudson  and  its  valley 
many  miles  southward. 

In  that  mansion  General  Schuyler  and  his  family  dispensed  a  princely 
hospitality  for  almost  furty  j-ears.  Every  stranger  of  distinction  passiug 
between  New  York  and  Canada,  public  functionaries  of  the  province  aud 
state  visiting  Albany,  and  resident  friends  and  relatives,  always  found  a 
hearty  welcome  to  bed  and  board  under  its  roof.  And  when  the  Rritish 
army  had  surrendered  to  the  victorious  republicans  at  Saratoga,  in  tho 
autumn  of  1777,  Sir  John  Burgoj"ne,  the  accomplished  commander  of  tlie 


'.ft- 


m 


THE   HUDSON. 


129 


royal  troops,  and  many  of  his  fellow-eaptivcs,  ■were  treated  as  friendly 
guests  at  tlie  general's  table.  To  this  circumstance  we  have  abeady 
alluded. 

"We  were  received  by  the  good  General  Schuyler,  his  wife  and 
daughters,"  says  the  Bai'oness  Eeidcsel,  "not  as  enemies,  but  as  liind 
friends ;  and  they  treated  us  with  the  most  marked  attention  and 
politeness,    as    they    did    General    Burgoyne,    who   had    caused    General 


GEXERIL  SCHUYLER'S  MAXSION  IN  AlEANV. 


Schujdor's  beautifully-finished  house  to  be  burned.  In  fact,  the}'  behaved 
like  persons  of  exalted  minds,  who  determined  to  bury  all  recollections  of 
their  own  injuries  in  the  contemplation  of  our  misfortunes.  General 
Burgoyne  was  struck  with  General  Schuyler's  generosity,  and  said  to  him, 
'You  show  me  great  kindness,  though  I  have  done  you  much  injiuy.' 
'  That  was  the  fate  of  war,'  replied  the  brave  man,  '  let  us  say  no  more 
about  it.' " 

"The  British  commander  was  well  received  by  Mrs.  Schuyler,"  says 
the  Marquis  De  Chastcllux,  in  his  "Travels  in  America,"  "  and  lodged 
in  the  best  apartment  in  the  house.     An  excellent  supper  was  served  him 

s 


130  THE    HUDSON. 


in  the  evening,  tlio  honours  of  which  were  done  with  so  much  grace  that 
he  was  affected  even  to  tears,  and  said,  with  a  deep  sigh,  '  Indeed,  this  is 
doing  too  much  for  the  man  who  has  ravaged  their  lands  and  burned  their 
dwellings  ! '  The  next  morning  he  was  reminded  of  his  misfortunes  bj- 
an  incident  that  would  have  amused  any  one  else.  His  bed  was  prepared 
iu  a  large  room,  but  as  he  had  a  numerous  suite,  or  family,  several 
mattresses  were  spread  on  the  floor,  for  some  officers  to  sleep  near  him. 
Schuyler's  second  son,  a  little  fellow,  about  seven  years  old,  very  arch  and 
forward,  but  very  amiable,  was  running  all  the  morning  about  the  house. 
Opening  the  door  of  the  saloon,  he  burst  out  a  laughing  on  seeing  all  the 
English  collected,  and  shut  it  after  him,  exclaiming,  '  You  are  all  my 
prisoners  ! '  Tliis  innocent  cruelty  rendered  them  more  melancholy  than 
before." 

Schuyler's  mansion  was  the  theatre  of  a  stirring  event,  in  the  summer 
of  1781.  The  general  was  then  engaged  in  the  civil  service  of  his  country, 
and  was  at  home.  The  war  was  at  its  height,  and  the  person  of  Schuyler 
was  regarded  as  a  capital  prize  by  his  Tory  enemies.  A  plan  was 
conceived  to  seize  him,  and  carry  him  a  prisoner  into  Canada.  A  Tory 
of  his  neighbourhood,  named  "Waltemeyer,  a  colleague  of  the  more 
notorious  Joe  Bettys,  was  employed  for  the  purpose.  With  a  party  of  his 
associates,  some  Canadians  and  Indians,  he  prowled  in  the  woods,  near 
Albany,  for  several  days,  awaiting  a  favourable  opportunity.  From  a 
Dutch  labourer,  whom  he  seized,  he  learned  that  the  general  was  at  home, 
and  kept  a  body-guard  of  six  men  in  the  liouse,  three  of  them,  in 
succession,  being  continually  on  duty.  The  Dutchman  was  compelled  to 
take  an  oath  of  secrecy,  but  appears  to  have  made  a  mental  reservation, 
for,  as  soon  as  possible,  ho  hastened  to  Schuyler's  house,  and  warned  him 
of  his  peril. 

At  the  close  of  a  sultry  day  in  August,  the  general  and  his  family  were 
sitting  in  the  large  hall  of  the  mansion ;  the  servants  were  dispersed 
about  the  premises ;  three  of  the  guard  were  asleep  in  the  basement,  and 
the  other  three  were  lying  upon  the  grass  in  front  of  the  house.  The 
night  had  fallen,  when  a  servant  announced  that  a  stranger  at  the  back 
gate  wished  to  speak  with  the  general.  His  errand  was  immediately 
apprehended.    The  doors  and  windows  were  closed  and  barixd,  the  family 


THE   HUDSON. 


131 


were  hastily  coUeeted  in  an  upper  room,  and  the  general  ran  to  his  bed- 
chamber for  his  arms.  From  the  window  he  saw  the  house  surrounded 
by  armed  men.  For  the  purpose  of  arousing  the  sentinels  upon  the  grass, 
and,  perhaps,  alarm  the  town,  then  lialf  a  mile  distant,  he  fired  a  pistol 
from  the  window.  At  that  moment  the  assailants  burst  open  the  doors, 
and,  at  the  same  time,  Mrs.  St;huyler  perceived  that,  in  the  confusion  and 
alarm,  in  their  retreat  from  the  hall,  her  infant  child,  a  few  months  old. 


aTAIRCASK  IN  SLIIUVLKR'S  MANSION. 


liad  been  left  in  a  cradle  in  the  nursery  below.  She  was  flying  to  the 
rescue  of  her  child,  when  the  general  interposed,  and  prevented  her.  But 
her  third  daughter  (who  afterwards  became  the  wife  of  the  last  Patroon 
of  Eensselacrwyck)  instantly  rushed  down  stairs,  snatched  the  still 
sleeping  infant  from  the  cradle,  and  bore  it  off  in  safety.  One  of  the 
Indians  hurled  a  sharp  tomahawk  at  her  as  she  ascended  the  stairs.  It 
cut  her  dress  within  a  few  inches  of  the  infant's  head,   and  struck  the 


132  THE    HUDSON. 


stair  rail  at  the  lower  turn,  where  the  scar  may  bo  still  seen.  At  that 
moment,  Waltemeyer,  supposing  her  to  he  a  servant,  exclaimed,  "Wench, 
wench,  where  is  your  master  ? "  With  great  presence  of  mind,  she 
replied,  "Gone  to  alarm  the  town."  The  general  heard  her,  and, 
throwing  up  the  window,  called  out,  as  if  to  a  multitude,  "  Come  on,  my 
brave  fellows !  surround  the  house,  and  secure  the  villains ! "  Tlie 
marauders  were  then  in  tlie  dining-room,  plundering  the  general's  plate. 
With  tliis,  and  the  three  guards  that  were  in  the  house,  and  were 
disarmed,  they  made  a  precipitate  retreat  in  the  direction  of  Canada. 

The  infant  daughter,  who  so  narrowly  escaped  death,  was  the  late 
Mrs.  Catherine  Van  Rensselaer  Cochran,  of  Oswego,  New  York,  who  was 
General  Schuyler's  youngest  and  last  surviving  child.  She  died  toward 
the  close  of  August,  1857,  at  the  age  of  seventy-six  years. 

Albany  was  made  the  political  metropolis  of  the  State  of  New  York 
early  in  the  present  century,  when  the  Capitol,  or  State-House,  was 
erected.  It  stands  upon  a  hill  at  the  heat  of  broad,  steep,  busy  State 
Street,  one  hundi'ed  and  thirty  feet  above  the  Hudson,  and  commands  a 
fine  prospect  of  the  whole  surrounding  country,  especially  the  rich 
agricultural  district  on  the  east  side  of  the  river.  In  front  of  the  Capitol 
is  a  small  well- shaded  park,  or  enclosed  public  square,  on  the  eastern  side 
of  which  are  costly  white  marble  buildings  devoted  to  the  official  business 
of  tlie  State  and  city.  The  Capitol  is  an  unpretending  structure,  of  brown 
free-stone  from  the  Nyack  quarries,  below  the  Highlands.  It  is  two 
stories  in  height,  and  ornamented  with  a  portico,  whose  roof  is  supported 
by  four  grey  mai'ble  columns  of  the  Ionic  order,  tctrastyle.  The  building- 
is  surmounted  by  a  dome  supported  by  several  small  Ionic  columns,  and 
bearing  upon  its  crown  a  wooden  statue  of  Themis,  the  goddess  of  justice 
and  law.  Within  it  are  halls  for  the  two  branches  of  the  State  legislature 
(Senate  and  General  Assembly),  an  executive  chamber  for  the  official  use 
of  tlie  Governor,  an  apartment  for  the  Adjutant-General,  and  rooms  for 
the  use  of  the  higher  state  courts. 

Immediately  in  the  rear  of  the  Capitol  is  the  building  containing  the 
State  library,  which  includes  nearly  forty  thousand  volumes,  and  some 
valuable  manuscripts.     It  is  a  free,  but  not  a  circulating,  library. 

Albany  contained  only  about  six  thousand  inhabitants  when  it  was 


THE    HUDSON. 


133 


made  the  State  capital,  and  its  progress  iu  business  and  population  was 
very  slow  until  the  successful  establishment  of  steam-boat  navigation  on 
the  Hudson,  and  the  completion  of  that  stupendous  work  of  internal 
improvement,  the  Erie  Canal,  by  which  the  greatest  of  the  inland  seas  of 
the  United  States  (Lake  Erie,  Huron,  Michigan,  and  Superior)  were 
connected  by  navigable  waters  with  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  through  the 


THK  Sl'ATli  CAPllUL. 


Hudson  lliver.  The  idea  of  such  connection  had  occupied  the  minds  of 
sagacious  men  for  many  years,  foremost  among  whom  were  Elkanah 
"Watson,  General  Philip  Schuyler,  Christopher  Colles,  and  Gouverneur 
Morris;    and  thirty  years  before  the  great  work  was  commenced,  Joel 


Barlow,    one   of 
Columbiis- 


tlic    early  American   poets,    wrote   in   his    Vision   of 


"  He  saw  as  widely  spreads  the  unchannelled  plain, 
Where  inland  realms  for  ages  bloomed  in  vain, 
Canals,  long  winding,  ope  a  wateiy  tiight. 
And  distant  streams,  and  seas,  and  lakes  unite. 

"  From  fair  Albania  low'rd  the  fading  sun. 
Back  through  tlie  midland  lengthening  channels  run  ; 
Meet  the  far  lakes,  their  beauteous  towns  that  lave. 
And  Hudson  joined  to  broad  Okiu^s  wave." 


134 


THE  HUDSON. 


The  Erie  Canal  enters  the  Hudson  at  Albany.  Its  western  terminus  is 
the  city  of  Buffalo,  at  the  east  end  of  Lake  Erie.  The  length  of  the  canal 
is  360  miles,  and  its  original  width  was  forty  feet,  with  depth  sufficient 
to  bear  boats  of  eighty  tons  burden.  It  was  completed  in  the  year  1825, 
at  a  cost  to  the  State  of  nearly  eight  millions  of  dollars.  The  business 
demands  upon  it  warranting  an  enlargement  to  seventy  feet  in  width, 
work  with  that  result  in  view  has  been  in  progress  for  several  years.  It 
flows  through  the  entire  length  of  the  beautiful  Mohawk  valley,  crosses 


CANAL  BASIN  AT  ALUAXV. 


the  Moliawk  River  several  times,  and  enters  Albany  at  the  north  end  of 
the  city. 

Near  where  the  last  aqueduct  of  the  canal  crosses  the  Mohawk  River, 
the  rapids  above  Cohoes  Falls  commence.  The  Indians  had  a  touching 
legend  connected  with  those  rapids,  that  exhibits,  in  brief  sentences,  a 
vivid  picture  of  the  workings  of  the  savage  mind. 

Occuna,  a  young  Seneca  warrior,  and  his  affianced  were  carelessly 
paddling  along  the  river  in  a  canoe,  at  the  head  of  the  rapids,  when  they 
suddenly  perceived  themselves  drawn  irresistibly  by  the  current  to  the 


THE   HUDSON.  135 


middle  of,  and  down,  the  stream  towards  the  cataract.  "When  they  found 
deliverance  to  be  impossible,  the  lovers  prepared,  to  meet  the  great  Master 
of  Life  with  composure,  and  began  the  melancholy  death-song,  in 
responsive  sentences.  Occuna  began:  "  Daughter  of  a  mighty  warrior  ! 
the  Great  Manitore  [the  Supreme  God]  calls  me  hence;  he  bidsmc  hasten 
into  his  presence ;  I  hear  his  voice  in  the  stream  ;  I  perceive  his  Spirit 
in  the  moving  of  the  waters.  The  light  of  his  eyes  danceth  upon  the  swift 
rapids." 

The  maiden  replied  :  "Art  thou  not  thyself  a  mighty  warrior,  0 
Occuna  ?  Hath  not  thy  hatchet  been  often  bathed  in  the  red  blood  of 
thine  enemies  ?  Hath  the  fleet  deer  ever  escaped  thy  arrow,  or  the 
beaver  eluded  thy  pursuit  ?  Why,  then,  shouldst  thou  fear  to  go  into  the 
presence  of  Manitore  ?  " 

Occuna  responded  :  "ilanitore  regardeth  the  brave — he  respecteth  the 
prayer  of  the  mighty  !  "Wlien  I  selected  thee  from  the  daughters  of  thy 
mother,  I  promised  to  live  and  die  with  thee.  The  Thunderer  hath  called 
us  together. 

"  Welcome,  0  shade  of  Oriska,  great  chief  of  the  invincible  Senecas  ! 
Lo,  a  warrior  and  the  daughter  of  a  warrior  come  to  join  you  in  the  feast 
of  the  blessed  !  " 

Occuna  was  dashed  in  pieces  among  the  rocks,  but  his  affianced  maiden 
was  preserved  to  tell  the  story  of  her  perils.  Occuna,  the  Indian  said, 
"  was  raised  high  above  the  regions  of  the  moon,  from  whence  he  views 
with  joy  the  prosperous  hunting  of  the  warriors ;  he  gives  pleasant 
dreams  to  his  friends,  and  terrifies  their  enemiea  with  dreadful  omens." 
And  when  any  of  his  tribe  passed  this  fatal  cataract,  they  halted,  and 
with  brief  solemn  ceremonies  commemorated  the  death  of  Occuna. 

A  capacious  basin,  comprising  an  area  of  thirty-two  acres,  was  formed 
for  the  reception  of  the  vessels  and  commerce  of  the  canal,  and  in  safe 
harbour  for  its  boats  and  the  river  craft,  in  winter,  by  the  erection  of  a 
pier,  a  mile  in  length,  upon  a  shoal  in  front  of  the  city.  It  was  constructed 
by  a  stock  company.  The  basin  was  originally  closed  at  the  upper  and 
lower  ends  by  lock-gates.  These  were  soon  removed  to  allow  the  tide 
and  currents  of  the  river  to  flow  freely  through  the  basin,  for  the 
dispersion  of  obstructions.     When  the  Western  Kailway  from  Boston  to 


136 


THE    HUDSON. 


Albany  was  completed,  a  passage  was  made  through  this  pier  for  ferry- 
boats, the  bridges  not  being  sufficient  for  the  accommodation  of  travellers 
and  freight.  The  pier  was  also  soon  covered  with  stoi'ehouses ;  and  when 
the  Harlem  and  Hudson  River  Railways  (the  former  skirting  the  western 
borders  of  Connecticut,  eighteen  or  twenty  miles  cast  of  the  Hudson,  and  the 
latter  following  tlic  river  shore)  were  finished,  and  their  termini  were 
fixed  at  the  point  of  that  of  the  "Western  Railway,  the  opening  in  the  pier 
was  widened,  and  ferry-boats  made  a  passage  through  continually. 

These  roads,  with  the  great  Central  Railway  extending  west  from 
Albany,  and  others  penetrating  the  country  northward,  together  with  the 
Champlain  Canal,  have  made  that  city  the  focus  of  an  immense  trade  and 
travel.  The  amount  of  property  that  reaches  Albany  by  canal  alone,  is 
between  two  and  three  millions  of  tons  annually ;  of  which  almost  a 
million  of  tons,  chiefly  in  the  various  forms  of  timber,  are  the  products  of 
the  forests.  The  timber  trade  of  Albany  is  very  extensive,  amounting  in 
value  to  between  six  or  seven  millions  of  dollars  annually.  Manufacturing 
is  carried  on  there  extensively ;  and  the  little  town  of  six  thousand 
inhabitants,  when  it  was  made  the  State  capital,  about  sixty  years  before, 
comprised  in  18G0  almost  seventy  thousand  souls. 

It  is  not  within  the  scope  of  our  plan  of  illustrating  the  Hudson  to  do 
more  than  offer  a  general  outline  of  its  various  features,  as  exhibited 
in  the  forms  of  nature  and  the  works  of  man.  We  leave  to  the 
statistician  the  task  of  giving  in  detail  an  account  of  the  progress  of  towns 
and  villages,  in  their  industrial  operations  and  the  institutions  of  learning. 
We  picture  to  the  eye  and  mind  only  such  prominent  features  as  would 
naturally  engage  the  observation  of  the  tourist  seeking  recreation  and 
incidental  knowledge.  With  this  remark  we  leave  the  consideration  of 
Albany,  after  saying  a  few  words  concerning  the  Dudley  Obsen-atory,  an 
establishment  devoted  to  astronomical  science,  and  ranking  in  its 
appropriate  appointments  with  the  best  of  its  class  of  aids  to  human 
knowledge. 

The  Dudley  Observatory  was  projected  about  eight  years  ago,  and  is 
nearly  completed.  It  is  the  result  of  a  conference  of  several  scientific 
gentlemen,  who  resolved  to  establish  at  the  State  capital  an  astronomical 
observatory,  that,  for  completeness,  should  be  second  to  none  in  the  world. 


THE   HUDSON. 


\g4r,^^^ 


137 


General  Van  Rensselaer,  the  present  proprietor  of  the  Manor  House,  at 
Albany,  presented  for  the  purpose  eight  acres  of  land  upon  an  eminence 
north  of  the  city.  This  preliminary  step  was  followed  by  Mrs.  Blandina 
Dudley,  widow  of  a  wealthy  Albany  merchant,  who  offered  twelve 
thousand  dollars  towards  the  cost  of  erecting  a  building.  Those  having 
the  matter  in  charge  resolved  to  call  it  the  Dudley  Observatory,  in  honour 
of  the  generous  lady.  She  subsequently  increased  her  gift  for  apparatus 
and  endowments  to  seventy-six  thousand  dollars.     The  chief  spring  of  her 


THE  DUDLEY  OBSERVATORT. 


generosity  was  a  reverential  respect  for  her  husband.  With  wisdom  she 
chose  this  instrument  of  scientific  investigation  to  be  his  enduring 
monument.  Others  made  liberal  donations,  trustees  were  appointed,  a 
scientific  council,  to  take  charge  of  the  establishment,  was  formed,  and 
the  building  was  commenced  in  the  spring  of  1853.  A  great  heliometer, 
named  in  honour  of  Mrs.  Dudley,  was  constructed  ;  and  Thomas  W.  Olcott, 
of  Albany,  who  took  great  interest  in  the  enterprise  from  the  beginning, 
contributed  sufficient  money  to  purchase  the  splendid  meridian  circle  by 
Pistor  and  Martin,  of  Berlin,  the  finest  instrument  of  the  kind  in  the  world. 


138  THE   HUDSON. 


It  is  called  tlio  Olcott  Meridian  Circle.  The  whole  establishment  was  to 
have  been  placed  under  the  superintendence  of  the  eminent  Professor 
Oi-msby  M.  Mitchel,  of  Ohio.  The  Civil  War  broke  out,  and  Mr.  Mitchel, 
animated  by  patriotic  zeal  for  the  salvation  of  his  country,  entered  the 
military  service,  for  which  he  had  been  educated  at  West  Point,  and  was 
made  a  general  officer.  While  in  command  of  the  "Department  of  the 
South"  at  Beaufort,  South  Carolina,  he  died  from  the  effects  of  yellow 
fever. 

The  Dudley  Observatory  is  upon  the  highest  summit  of  the  grounds, 
and  commands  an  extensive  view  of  the  Hudson  and  the  adjacent  country. 
It  is  cruciform,  with  a  front  of  about  eighty  feet,  and  a  depth  of  seventy- 
five  feet.  Its  massive  walls  arc  of  brick,  faced  with  brown  freestone. 
All  the  arrangements  within,  for  the  use  of  instruments,  are  very  perfect. 
In  a  large  niche  opposite  the  entrance  door  is  a  marble  bust  of  Mr.  Dudley, 
by  Palmer,  the  eminent  sculptoi',  on  the  pedestal  of  which  is  the  following 
inscription : —  ♦ 

CHARLES    E.    BUDLEY, 

Br   BLiNDINA,    HIS   WIFE. 

DEIUCATED    TO    THE    ABVANCEMENT    OP 

ASTEONOJIT. 

In  the  Clock-room  of  the  Observatory  is  the  apparatus  by  which  a  "time- 
ball  "  on  the  top  of  the  State  Capitol,  a  mile  distant,  is  di'opped  at 
precisely  twelve  o'clock  each  day,  and  bells  arc  also  rung  at  the  same 
instant  in  the  senate  and  assembly  chambers.  The  ball  is  seen  in  our 
sketch  of  the  Capitol.  It  is  f  jur  and  a  half  feet  in  diameter,  is  mounted 
on  the  flag-staff,  and  is  raised  each  day  at  ten  minutes  before  twelve. 
The  force  of  the  fall  is  broken  by  spiral  springs  at  the  foot  of  the  flag-staff. 
Another  but  smaller  time-ball  is  dropped  at  the  same  instant  in 
Broadway,  in  front  of  the  telegraph-office,  and  hundreds  of  persons  may 
be  seen  daily  holding  their  watches  at  the  approach  of  the  meridian 
moment,  to  regulate  them  by  this  unerring  indicator. 

Immediately  opposite  Albany  is  the  commencement  of  fine  alluvial 
"  flats,"  almost  on  a  level  with  the  Hudson,  and  subject  to  overflow  when 
floods  or  high  tides  prevail.  At  the  hca<l  of  these  "  flats  "  lies  the  \-illage 
of  Grccnbush  {IIH    Greene   Bosch,    "the   pine   woods,"  in   the   Dutch 


THE    HUDSON. 


139 


language),  whicli  was  laid  out  at  the  beginning  of  this  century.  It  has 
since  crept  up  the  slope,  and  now  presents  a  beautiful  rural  village  of 
almost  four  thousand  inhabitants.  Many  business  men  of  Albany  have 
pleasant  country  residences  there.  About  a  mile  from  the  ferry  is  the 
site  of  extensive  barracks  erected  by  the  United  States  government  as  a 
place  of  rendezvous  for  troops'  at  the  opening  of  the  war  between  Great 
Britain   and   the   United  States  in   1812.     Provision  was  made   for  six 


GREKKBUSH  BAILW.iV-STATlO.N. 


thousand  soldiers;  and  theii-  General  Dearborn,  the  commander-in-chief 
of  the  United  States  army,  had  his  quarters  for  some  time.  On  this  very 
spot  Abercrombie  and  Amherst  collected  their  troops  above  a  hundred 
years  ago,  preparatory  to  an  invasion  of  Canada,  or,  at  least,  the  capture 
of  the  French  fortresses  on  Lake  Champlain ;  and  from  that  same  spot 
went  companies  and  regiments  to  the  northern  frontiers  in  1812 — 14,  to 
invade  Canada,  or  to  oppose  an  invasion  from  that  province,  as  circumstance-s 
might   require.     'No   traces   now  remain  of  warlike  preparation.     The 


»  Albany  is  seen  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river. 


140  THE    HUDSON. 


peaceful  pursuits  of  agriculture  have  taken  the  place  of  the  turmoil  of  the 
camp,  and  instead  of  tlio  music  of  the  shrill  fife  and  the  sonorous  di'um 
that  came  up  from  the  river's  brink,  when  battalions  marched  away  for 
the  field,  the  scream  of  the  steam-whistle,  the  jingle  of  bells,  and  the 
hoarse  breathings  of  the  locomotive  are  heard — for  at  Greenbush  are 
concentrated  the  termini  of  four  railways,  that  are  almost  hourly  pouring 
living  freight  and  tons  of  merchandise  upon  the  vessels  of  the  Albany 
ferries.  Buildings  of  every  description  for  the  use  of  these  railways  are 
there  in  a  cluster,  the  most  conspicuous  of  which  is  the  immense  many- 
sided  engine-house  of  the  Western  Road,  whose  great  dome,  covered  with 
bright  tin,  is  a  conspicuous  object  on  a  sunny  day  for  scores  of  miles 
around. 

The  Hudson  Eiver  Railway  is  on  the  east  side  of  the  stream,  and  follows 
its  tortuous  banks  all  the  way  from  Albany  to  New  York,  sometimes 
leading  through  tunnels  or  deep  rocky  gorges  at  promontories,  and  at 
others  making  tangents  across  bays  and  the  mouths  of  tributary  streams 
by  means  of  bridges,  trestlework,  and  causeways.  Its  length  is  H3  miles. 
More  than  a  dozen  trains  each  way  pass  over  portions  of  the  road  in  the 
course  of  twenty-four  hours,  affording  the  tourist  an  opportunity  to  visit 
in  a  short  space  of  time  every  village  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  there 
being  good  ferries  at  each.  The  sliores  are  hilly  and  generally  well- 
cultivated  ;  and  the  diversity  of  the  landscape,  whether  seen  from  the  cars 
or  a  steamer,  present  to  Vrc  eye,  in  rapid  succession,  ever- varying  pictures 
of  life  and  beauty,  comfort  and  thrift. 


CHAPTEK    VIII. 


C!?.HE  first  village  below  Albany  is  the  pretty  one  of 
't  Castleton,  on  the  Hudson  Eiver  Eailway,  about 
fight  miles  below  Greenbush.  Around  it  is  a 
pleasant  agricultural  country,  and  between  it  and 
Albany,  on  the  western  shore,  flows  in  the  romantic 
Norman's-Kill  (the  Indian  'Tawasenfha,  or  Place  of 
many  Dead),  that  comes  down  from  the  region  of 
the  lofty  Helderbergs.  Upon  the  island  in  the 
Hudson,  at  the  mouth  of  this  stream — a  noted  place 
of  encampment  and  trade  for  the  Iroquois — the  Dutch  built  their  first 
fort  on  the  Hudson  in  1614,  and  placed  it  in  command  of  Captain 
Christians.  The  island  was  named  Kasteel,  or  Castle,  and  from  it  the 
little  village  just  mentioned  received  its  name.  The  alluvial  "flats"  in 
this  neighbourhood  are  wide,  and  low  islands,  partly  wooded  and  partly 
cultivated,  divide  the  river  in  channels.  They  stretch  parallel  with  the 
shores,  a  considerable  distance,  and  the  immense  passenger  steamers 
sometimes  find  it  difficult  to  traverse  the  sinuous  main  channel.  These, 
and  the  tall-masted  sloops,  have  the  appearance,  from  the  Castleton 
shore,  of  passing  through  vast  meadows,  the  water  that  bears  them  not 
being  visible. 

In  this  vicinity  is  the  famous  hidden  sand-bar,  called  Overslagh  by  the 
Dutch,  so  formidable  to  the  navigators  of  this  part  of  the  river,  not 
because  of  any  actual  danger,  but  of  tedious  detentions  caused  by  running 
aground.  Some  improvements  have  been  made.  In  former  years  the 
sight  of  from  twenty  to  fifty  sail  of  river  craft,  fast  aground  on  the 
Overslagh  at  low  tide,  was  not  rare,  and  the  amount  of  profanity  uttered 
by  the  vexed  sailors  was  sufficient  to  demoralise  the  whole  district.  This 
bar  is  formed  by  the  sand  brought  in  by  the  Norman's  Kill  and  other 
streams,  and  large  sums  have  been  expended  in  damming,  dredging,  and 


142 


THE    HUDSON. 


dyking,  without  entire  success.  As  early  as  1790,  the  State  legislature 
authorised  the  proprietors  of  Mills  and  Papskni  Islands  to  erect  a  dam  or 
dyke  between  them,  so  as  to  throw  all  the  water  into  the  main  channel, 
and  thus  increase  its  Telocity  sufficient  to  carry  away  the  accumulating 
sand.  It  abated,  but  did  not  cure  the  difficulty.  This  bar  is  a  perpetual 
contradiction  to  the  frequent  boast,  that  the  navigation  of  the  Hudson  is 
unobstructed  along  its  entire  tide-watercourse.  The  Ovcrslagh  is  the 
only  exception,  however. 

About  four  miles  below  Castleton,  is  the  village  of  Schodaok,  a  deriva- 


VIKW   KEAR  THE  OVEHSLAGII. 


five  from  the  Mohegan  word  is-cho-da,  "  a  meadow,  or  fire-plain."  This 
was  anciently  the  scat  of  the  council  fire  of  the  Mohegans  upon  the 
Hudson.  They  extended  their  villages  along  the  eastern  bank  of  the 
stream,  as  high  as  Lansingburgb,  and  their  hunting  grounds  occupied  the 
entire  counties  of  Columbia  and  Eensselaer.  As  the  white  settlements 
crowded  there,  the  Mohegans  retired  eastwardly  to  the  valley  of  the 
Housatonnuc,  in  Massachusetts,  where  their  descendants,  known  as  the 
Stockbridge  Indians,  were  for  a  long  time  religiously  instructed  by  the 


THE   HUDSON. 


143 


eminent  Jonathan  Edwards.  They  embraced  Christianity,  abandoned 
the  chase  as  a  means  of  procming  subsistence,  and  adopted  the  arts  of 
civilised  life.  A  small  remnant  of  these  once  powerful  Mohegans  is  now 
living,  as  thriving  agricultuiists,  on  the  shores  of  "Winnebago  Lake,  in 
the  far  north-west.  , 

About  seven  miles  below  Schodack  is  Stuyvesant  Landing,  the  "port" 
of  Kinderhook  {Kinders  Soech),  the  Dutch  name  for  "  children's  point,  or 
corner."  It  is  derived,  as  tradition  asserts,  from  the  fact  that  a  Swede, 
the  first  settler  at  the  point  at  Upper  Kinderhook  Landing,  had  a 
numerous  progeny.  The  village,  which  was  settled  by  Dutch  and 
Swedes  at  an  early  period,  is  upon  a  plain  five  miles  from  the  river,  with 
most  attractive  rural  surroundings.  There,  for  more  than  twenty  years 
after  his  retirement  from  public  life,  the  late  Honourable  Martin  Van 
Buren,  a  descendant  of  one  of  the  early  settlers,  and  the  eighth  president 
of  the  United  States,  resided.  His  pleasant  seat,  embowered  in  lindens, 
is  called  "Lindenwold,"  and  there,  in  delightful  quietude,  the  retired 
chief  magistrate  of  the  republic  spent  the  evening  of  his  days. 

The  country  road  from  Kinderhook  to  the  Coxsakie  station  passes 
through  a  rich  and  well-cultivated  region,  and  leads  the  tourist  to  points 
from  which  the  first  extensive  views  of  the  magnificent  range  of  the 
Katzbergs  may  be  obtained. 

Coxsakie  village  is  upon  the  west  side  of  the  river,  partly  along  the 
shore  for  a  mile,  in  three  clusters.  The  more  ancient  portion,  called 
Coxsakie  Street,  is  upon  a  beautiful  plain  a  mile  from  the  river.  The 
latter  was  originally  built  upon  the  post  road,  as  most  of  the  old  villages 
along  the  Hudson  were,  the  river  traffic  being  at  that  time  inconsiderable. 
The  name  is  the  Iroquois  word  IvuxaJcee,  or  the  Cut  Banks,  Anglicised. 
Its  appropriateness  may  be  understood  by  the  form  of  the  shore,  whose 
banks  have  evidently  been  cut  down  by  the  rushing  river  currents  that 
sweep  swiftly  along  between  an  island  and  the  main,  when  the  spring 
freshets  occur.  From  a  high  rocky  bluff  at  the  ferry,  on  the  cast  side  of 
the  river,  a  fine  view  of  Coxsakie,  with  the  blue  Katzbergs  as  a  back- 
ground, may  be  obtained.  Turning  southward,  the  eye  takes  in  a  broad 
expanse  of  the  river  and  country,  with  the  city  of  Hudson  in  the  distance, 
and  northward  are  seen  the  little  villages  of  Coeymans  and  New  Baltimore, 


144 


THE   HUDSON. 


on  the  wcstcni  shore.  The  site  of  the  former  bore  the  Indian  name  of 
Sanugo.  It  was  settled  by  the  Dutch,  and  received  its  present  name 
from  one  of  its  earlier  inhabitants. 

It  was  in  blossoming  May,  in  1860,  when  the  shad  fishers  were  in 
their  glory,  drawing  full  nets  of  treasure  from  the  river  in  quick 
succession,  when  the  "  tide  served,"  that  I  visited  this  portion  of  the 
Hudson.  On  both  sides  of  the  river  they  were  pursuing  tlieii'  vocation 
with  assiduity,  for  "the    season"  lasts   only  about  two  months.      The 


immense  reels  on  which  they  stretch  and  dry  their  nets,  the  rough, 
uncouth  costume  of  the  fishermen,  appropriate  to  the  water  and  the  slime, 
the  groups  of  young  people  who  gather  upon  the  beach  to  see  the 
"  catch,"  form  interesting  and  sometimes  picturesque  foregrounds  to 
every  view  on  these  shores.  The  shad*  is  the  most  important  fish  of  the 
Hudson,   being  very  delicious   as  food,   and   caught  in   such   immense 

•  Alosd  jjrtpstnbilis.  Head  aud  back  dark  bluish;  sides  of  the  bo  lygi'eeiiish,  with  blue  and  yellowish 
changeable  metallic  reflections ;  belly  nearly  white ;  length  from  one  to  two  feet.  It  resides  in  tlie 
northern  seas,  but  comes  to  ns  from  the  south  to  deposit  its  spawn.  It  appears  at  Charleston  in  January 
or  February ;  early  in  March  at  Norfolk  and  Baltimore,  and  at  New  York  at  the  Ui'ter  end  of  March. 


V^^ 


THE    HUDSON. 


145 


numbers,  as  to  make  them  cheap  dishes  for  the  poor  man's  table.  They 
enter  the  Hudson  in  immense  numbers  towards  the  close  of  March  or 
beginning  of  April,  and  ascend  to  the  head  of  tide  water  to  spawn.  It  is 
while  on  their  passage  up  that  the  greater  number  and  best  conditioned 
are  caught,  several  hundreds  being  sometimes  taken  in  a  single  "catch." 
They  generally  descend  the  river  at  the  close  of  May,  when  they  are 


I 


FISUINC;  STATIOX.— STVBOEOX,  SH-U>,  BASS.* 

called  Back  Shad,  and  are  so  lean  and  almost  worthless,  that  "thin  as  a 
June  Shad"  is  a  common  epithet  applied  to  lean  persons. 

The  Sturgeon  f  is  also  caught  from  the  Hudson  in  large  numbers  at 
most  of  the  fishing  stations.  The  most  important  of  these  are  in  the 
vicinity  of  Hyde  Park,  a  few  miles  above,  and  Low  Point,  a  few  miles 
below,  the  city  of  Poughkeepsie.  These  fish  are  sold  in  such  quantities 
in  Albany,  that  they  have  been  called,  in  derision,  "Albany  beef,"  and 

'  The  lafftest  fish  iu  the  pk-uire  is  Ihe  stm'geou,  tlie  smallest  Uie  striped  bass,  and  the  other  a  shad. 
The  relative  sizes  and  proportions  are  correct. 

t  Tlie  short-nosed  Sturgeon  (Acipenset-  hrevinostris)  is  a  large  agile  fish  without  scales,  the  smootll 
sltiu  covered  wilh  small  spinous  asperites  scattered  eiiuallj-  over  it.  Its  colom-  is  duslsy  above,  with  faint 
traces  of  oblique  bands  ;  belly  white,  and  the  fins  tinged  with  reddish  colour. 


UTI 


fforK^ 


146  THE    HUDSON. 


tlie  inhabitants  of  that  ancient  town,  "  Sturgeonites."  They  vary  in  size 
from  two  to  eight  feet  in  length,  and  in  weight  from  100  to  4.50  lbs. 
The  "catch"  commences  in  April,  and  continues  until  the  latter  end  of 
August.  The  flesh  is  used  for  food  by  some,  and  the  oil  that  is  extracted 
is  considered  equal  to  the  best  sperm  as  an  illuminator.  The  voyagers 
upon  the  Hudson  may  frequently  see  them  leap  several  feet  out  of  water 
when  chasing  their  prey  of  smaller  fish  to  the  surface,  and  they  have  been 
known  to  seriously  injure  small  boats,  either  by  striking  their  bottoms 
with  their  snout  in  rising,  or  falling  into  them.  Bass  and  herring  are 
also  caught  in  abundance  in  almost  every  part  of  tlie  river,  and  numerous 
smaller  fishes  reward  the  angler's  patience  by  their  beauty  of  form,  if  he 
be  painter  or  poet,  and  their  delicious  flavour,  if  the  table  gives  him 
pleasure. 

About  thirty  miles  below  Albany,  lying  upon  a  bold,  rocky  promontory 
that  juts  out  from  the  eastern  sliorc  at  an  elevation  of  fifty  feet,  with  a 
beautiful  bay  ou  each  side,  is  the  city  of  Hudson,  the  capital  of  Columbia 
County,  a  port  of  entry,  and  one  of  the  most  delightfully  situated  towns 
on  the  river.  It  was  founded  in  1784  by  thirty  proprietors,  chiefly 
Quakers  from  New  England.  Never  in  the  history  of  the  rapid  growth 
of  cities  in  America  has  there  been  a  more  remarkable  example  than  that 
of  Hudson.  "Within  three  years  from  the  time  when  the  farm  on  which 
it  stands  was  purchased,  and  only  a  solitary  storehouse  stood  upon  the 
bank  of  the  river  at  the  foot  of  the  bins',  one  hundred  and  fifty  dwellings, 
with  wharves,  storehouses,  workshops,  barns,  &c.,  were  erected,  and  a 
population  of  over  fifteen  hundred  souls  had  settled  there,  and  become 
possessed  of  a  city  charter. 

The  principal  street  of  the  city  of  Hudson  extends  from  the  slopes  of  a 
lofty  eminence  called  Prospect  Hill,  nearly  a  mile,  to  the  brow  of  the 
promontory  fronting  the  river,  where  a  pleasant  public  promenade  was 
laid  out  more  than  fifty  years  ago.  It  is  adorned  with  trees  and 
shrubbery,  and  gravelled  walks,  and  afiords  charming  views  up  and  down 
the  river  of  the  beautiful  country  westward,  and  the  entire  range  of  the 
Katzbergs,  lying  ten  or  twelve  miles  distant.  In  the  north-west,  the 
Heldcrberg  range  looms  up  beyond  an  agricultural  district  dotted  with 
villages  and  farmhouses.     Southward  the  prospect  is  bounded  by  Mount 


THE   HUDSON. 


147 


Merino  high  and  near,  over  the  bay,  which  is  cultivated  to  its  summit, 
and  from  -whose  crown  the  Highlands  in  the  south,  the  Luzerne 
Mountains,  near  Lake  George,  in  the  north,  the  Katzbergs  in  the  west, 
and  the  Green  Mountains  eastward,  may  be  seen,  blue  and  shadowy,  and 
bounding  the  horizon  with  a  grand  and  mysterious  line,  while  at  the  feet 
of  the  observer,  the  city  of  Hudson  lies  like  a  picture  spread  upon  a  table. 
Directly  opposite  tlie  city  is  Athens,  a  thriving  little  village,  lying  upon 
the  river  slope,  and  having  a  connection  with  its  more  stately  sister  by 


VIEW  FROM  THE  PROMENADE,   HUDSON. 


means  of  a  steam  ferry-boat.  It  was  first  named  Lunenberg,  then 
Esperanza,  and  finally  was  incorporated  under  its  present  title.  Behind 
it  spreads  out  a  beautiful  country,  inhabited  by  a  population  consisting 
chiefly  of  descendants  of  the  Dutch.  All  thi'ough  that  region,  from 
Coxsakie  to  Kingston,  the  Dutch  language  is  still  used  in  many  families. 

The  country  around  Hudson  is  hilly  and  very  picturesque,  every  turn 
in  the  road  aifording  pleasant  changes  in  landscape  and  agreeable 
surprises.  A  little  northward,  Claverack  {Ilet  Klauver  Rach,  the  Clover 
Eeach)   Creek  comes  down  from  the  hills  in  falls   and   cascades,   and 


148 


THE   HUDSON. 


presents  many  romantic  little  scenes.  Near  its  banks,  a  few  miles  from 
Hudson,  arc  mineral  springs,  now  rising  into  celebrity,  and  known  as  the 
Columbia  Sulphur  Springs.  The  accommodations  for  invalids  and 
pleasure-seekers  are  arranged  in  the  midst  of  a  fine  hickory  grove,  and 
many  persons  spend  the  summer  months  there  very  delightfully,  away 
from  the  fashionable  crowd.  Tlie  tourist  should  not  omit  a  visit  to  these 
springs,  nor  to  Lebanon  Springs  farther  in  the  interior.     The  latter  may 


ATHENS,   KKOM  THE  HUDSON   IRON   WORK.S-* 


be  reached  by  railway  and  stage-coaches  from  Hudson,  with  small  expen- 
diture of  time  and  money. 

The  Lebanon  Springs  are  the  resort  of  many  people  during  the  summer 
months,  but  the  chief  attraction  there  to  the  tourist  is  a  village  two  miles 
distant,  upon  a  mountain  terrace,  composed  entirely  of  celibates  of  both 
sexes,  and  of  all  ages,  called  Shakers.     They  number  about  five  hundred. 


*  Tlie  Hudson  Iron  Works  are  at  the  entrance  of  the  South  Bay,  on  a  point  of  low  land  between  the 
river  and  the  railway.  Tliey  belong  to  a  Stock  Company.  The  chief  business  is  the  conversion  of  tlie 
crude  iron  ore  into  "pigs"  ready  for  the  manufacturer's  use.  Two  kinds  of  ore  are  used — hematite  from 
West  Stockbridge,  and  ynngnetic  from  the  Forest  of  Dean,  Mines,  in  the  Hudson  Highlands.  They  pro- 
duce about  16,000  tons  of  "  pig-iron  "  annually. 


THE   HUDSON. 


149 


and  own  and  occupy  ten  thousand  acres  of  land,  all  of  which  susceptible 
of  tillage  is  in  a  state  of  highest  cultivation.  The  sect  or  society  of  this 
singular  people  originated  in  England  a  little  more  than  one  hundi'ed 
years  ago.  Ann  Lee,  the  young  wife  of  a  blacksmith,  who  had  borne 
several  children,  conceived  the  idea  that  marriage  was  impure  and  sinful. 
She  found  disciples,  and  after  being  persecuted  as  a  fanatic  for  several 
years,  she  professed  to  have  had  a  direct  revelation  that  she  was  the  female 
manifestation  of  the  Christ  upon  earth,  the  male  manifestation  having  been 
Jesus,  the  Deity  being  considered  a  duality — a  being  composed  of  both 


VIEW  AT   KATZ-KILL  LANDING. 


sexes.  She  was,  and  still  is,  called  "  Mother  Ann,"  and  is  revered  by  her 
followers  with  a  feeling  akin  to  worship.  With  a  few  of  them  she  came 
to  America,  planted  "  the  church  "  a  few  miles  from  Albany,  at  a  place 
called  Niskayuna,  and  there  died.  There  are  now  eighteen  distinct 
communities  of  this  singular  people  in  the  United  States,  the  aggregate 
membership  numbering  little  more  than  four  thousand.  The  community 
at  New  Lebanon  is  the  most  perfect  of  all  in  its  arrangements,  and  there 
the  hierarchy  of  the  "  Millennial  Church  "  reside.     Their  strange  forms 


150  THE    HUDSON. 


of  worship,  consisting  chiefly  in  singing  anil  (lancing ;  their  qnaint 
costume,  their  simple  manners,  their  industry  and  frugalit}-,  the  perfection 
of  all  their  industrial  operations,  their  chaste  and  exemplary  lives,  and 
the  unsurpassed  heauty  and  picturesqueness  of  the  country  in  which  they 
arc  seated,  render  a  visit  to  the  Shakers  of  Lebanon  a  long-to-he- 
remembered  event  in  one's  life. 

About  sis  miles  below  Hudson  is  the  Oak-Hill  Station,  opposite  the 
Katz-Kill  (Cats-Kill)  landing,  at  the  mouth  of  the  Katz-Kill,  a  clear  and 
beautiful  stream  that  flows  down  from  the  hill  country  of  Sclioharie 
County  for  almost  forty  miles.  It  was  near  liere  tlmt  the  Half  Moon 
anchored  on  the  20tli  September,  1609,  and  was  detained  all  the  next  day 
on  account  of  the  great  number  of  natives  who  came  on  board,  and  had  a 
merry  time.  Master  Juet,  one  of  Hudson's  companions,  says,  in  his 
journal, — "  Our  master  and  his  mate  determined  to  trie  some  of  the 
chiefc  men  of  the  countrey,  whether  they  had  any  treaehcrie  in  them. 
So  they  tooke  them  downe  into  the  oabbin,  and  gave  them  so  much  wine 
and  aqua  vita:  that  they  were  all  merrie,  and  one  of  tlieni  had  his  wife  with 
liim,  A\hich  sate  so  modestly,  as  any  of  our  countrey  women  would  doe  in 
a  strange  place.  In  the  end,  one  of  them  was  druuke,  which  had  been 
aboord  of  our  ship  all  the  time  that  we  had  beeue  there  :  and  that  was 
strange  to  them,  for  they  could  not  tell  how  to  take  it.  The  canoes  and 
Iblke  went  all  on  shoare,  but  some  of  them  came  againe,  and  brought 
stropes  of  hcades  [wampmn,  made  of  the  clam-shell]  ;  some  had  sixe, 
seven,  eight,  nine,  ten,  and  gave  him.  So  he  slept  all  night  quietly.'' 
The  savages  did  not  venture  on  board  imtil  noon  the  next  day,  when  they 
were  glad  to  find  their  old  companion  that  was  so  drunk  quite  well  again. 
They  then  brought  on  board  tobacco,  and  more  beads,  which  they  gave  to 
Hudson,  "  and  made  an  Oration,"  and  afterward  sent  for  venison,  which 
was  brought  on  board. 

At  the  Oak  Hill  station  the  tourist  upon  the  railway  will  leave  it  for  a 
trip  to  the  Katzbcrgs  before  him,  ripon  which  may  be  seen,  at  the  distance 
of  eight  miles  in  an  air  line,  the  "Mountain  House,"  the  famous  resort 
for  hundi'eds  of  people  who  escape  from  the  dust  of  cities  during  the  heat 
of  summer.  The  river  is  crossed  on  a  steam  ferry-boat,  and  good 
omnibuses  convey  travellers  from  it  to  the  pleasant  village  of  Katz-Kill, 


THE   HUDSON. 


151 


which  lies  upon  a  slope  on  the  left  bank  of  the  stream  bearing  the  same 
name,  less  than  half  a  mile  frona  its  mouth.  At  the  village,  conveyances 
are  ready  at  all  times  to  take  the  tourist  to  the  Mountain  House,  twelve 
miles  distant  by  the  road,  which  passes  through  a  picturesque  and  highly 
cultivated  country,  to  the  foot  of  the  mountain.     Before  making  this 


ENTEANCE  TO  THE  KATZBERGS, 


tour,  however,  the  traveller  should  linger  awhile  on  the  banks  of  the 
Katz-Kill,  from  the  Hudson  a  few  miles  into  the  country,  for  there  may 
be  seen,  from  different  points  of  view,  some  of  the  most  charming  scenery 
in  the  world.     Every  turn  in  the  road,  every  bend  in  the  stream,  presents 


152  THE    HUDSON. 


new  and  attractive  pictures,  remarkable  for  beauty  and  diversity  in 
outline,  colour,  and  aerial  perspective.  The  solemn  Katzbergs,  sublime 
ia  form,  and  mysterious  in  their  dim,  incomprehensible,  and  ever-changing 
aspect,  almost  always  form  a  prominent  feature  in  the  landscape.  In  the 
midst  of  this  scenery.  Cole,  the  eminent  painter,  loved  to  linger  when  tlie 
shadows  of  the  early  morning  were  projected  towards  the  mountain,  then 
bathed  in  purple  mists ;  or  at  evening,  when  these  lofty  hills,  then  dark 
-  and  awful,  cast  their  deep  shadows  over  more  than  half  the  country 
below,  between  their  bases  and  the  river.  Charmed  with  this  region. 
Cole  made  it  at  fii-st  a  summer  retreat,  and  finally  his  permanent  residence, 
and  there,  in  a  fine  old  family  mansion,  delightfully  situated  to  command 
a  full  view  of  the  Katzberg  range  and  the  intervening  country,  his  spirit 
passed  from  earth,  while  a  sacred  poem,  created  by  his  wealthy  imagina- 
tion and  deep  religious  sentiment,  was  finding  expression  upon  his  easel 
in  a  series  of  fine  pictures,  like  those  of  "  The  Course  of  Empire," 
and  "  The  Yoyage  of  Life."  He  entitled  the  series,  "  The  Cross  and  the 
"World."  Only  one  of  the  pictures  was  finished.  One  had  found  form  in 
a  "study"  only,  and  two  others  were  partly  finished  on  the  large  canvas. 
Another,  making  the  fifth  (the  number  in  the  series),  was  about  half 
completed,  with  some  figures  sketched  in  with  white  chalk.  So  they 
remain,  just  as  the  master  left  them,  and  so  remains  his  studio.  It  is 
regarded  by  his  devoted  widow  as  a  place  too  sacred  for  the  common  gaze. 
The  stranger  never  enters  it. 

The  range  of  the  Katzbergs  *■  rises  abruptly  from  the  plain  on  their 
eastern  side,  where  the  road  that  leads  to  the  Mountain  House  enters 
them,  and  follows  the  margin  of  a  deep,  dark  glen,  through  which  flows 
a  clear  mountain  stream  seldom  seen  by  the  traveller,  but  heard 
continually  for  a  mile  and  a  half,  as,  in  swift  rapids  or  in  little  cascades, 
it  hurries  to  the  plain  below.  The  road  is  sinuous,  and  in  its  ascent  along 
the  side  of  that  glen,  or  more  properly  magnificent  gorge,  it  is  so  enclosed 
by  the  towering  hills  on  one  side  and  the  lofty  trees  that  shoot  up  on  the 

*  The  Indians  called  Uiis  range  of  hills  On-ti-0-ya,  signifying,  Mountains  of  the  Sky,  for  in  some 
conditions  of  the  atmosphere  they  are  said  to  appear  like  a  heavy  cumulous  cloud  above  the  hoii/on. 
The  Dutch  called  them  Katzbergs,  or  Cat  Mountains,  because  of  the  prevalence  of  panthers  and  wild-cats 
upon  them.  The  word  Cats-Kill  ia  partly  Enghsh  and  partly  Dmch :  Kalz-KiU,  Dutch ;  Cats-Creek, 
English. 


THE   HUDSON, 


153 


other,  that  little  can  he  seen  heyond  a  few  rods,  except  the  sky  ahove,  or 
glimpses  of  some  distant  summit,  until  the  pleasant  nouk  in  the  mountain 
is  reached,  wherein  the  Cahin  of  Hip  Van  "Wrinkle  is  nestled.  After  that 
the  course  of  the  road  is  more  nearly  parallel  with  the  river  and  the 


EIP  TAN  IVIXKLE'S  CABIK. 


plain,  and  through  frequent  vistas  glimpses  may  he  caught  of  the  country 
below,  that  charm  the  eye,  excite  the  fancy  and  the  imagination,  and 
make  the  heart  throh  quicker  and  stronger  with  pleasurable  emotions. 

Rip's  cabin  was  a  decent  frame-house,  as  the  Americans  call  dwellings 
made  of  wood,  with  two  rooms,  standing  by  the  side  of  the  road  half-way 

X 


154  THE   HUDSON. 


from  the  plain  to  the  Mountain  House,  at  the  head  of  the  gorge,  along 
whose  margin  the  traveller  has  asoendod.  It  was  so  called  because  it 
stood  within  the  "  amphitheatre  "  reputed  to  be  the  place  where  the  ghostly 
nine-pin  players  of  Irving's  charming  story  of  Rip  Van  Winkle  held  their 
revel,  and  where  thirsty  Bip  lay  down  to  his  long  repose  by  "  that  wicked 
flagon,"  watched  by  his  faithful  dog  Wolf,  and  undisturbed  by  the  tongue 
of  Dame  Vaa  Winkle.  As  one  stands  upon  the  rustic  bridge,  in  front  of 
the  cabin,  and  looks  down  the  dark  glen,  up  to  the  impending  cliffs,  or 
around  in  that  rugged  amphitheatre,  the  scene  comes  up  vividly  in  memory, 
and  the  "company  of  odd-looking  personages  playing  at  nine-pins" 
reappear.  "Some  wore  short  doublets,  others  jerkins,  with  long  knives 
iu  their  belts,  and  most  of  them  had  enormous  breeches,  of  similar  style 
with  that  of  tlic  guides.  Their  visages,  too,  were  peculiar :  one  had  a 
large  head,  broad  face,  and  small  piggish  eyes ;  the  face  of  another  seemed 
to  consist  entirely  of  a  nose,  and  was  surmounted  by  a  white  sugar-loaf  hat, 
set  off  with  a  little  red  cock's  tail.  They  all  had  beards,  of  various  shapes 
and  colours.  There  was  one  who  seemed  to  be  the  commander.  He  was 
a  stout  old  gentleman,  with  a  weather-beaten  countenance ;  he  wore  a 
laced  doublet,  broad  belt  and  hanger,  and  high-crowned  hat  and  feather, 
red  stockings,  and  high-heeled  shoes  with  roses  in  them.  What  seemed 
particularly  odd  to  Eip  was,  that  though  these  folks  were  evidently 
amusing  themselves,  yet  they  maintained  the  gravest  faces,  the  most 
mysterious  silence,  and  were  withal  the  most  melancholy  party  of  pleasure 
he  had  ever  witnessed.  Nothing  interrupted  the  stillness  of  the  scene  but 
the  noise  of  the  balls,  which,  whenever  they  were  rolled,  echoed  along  the 
mountains  like  rumbling  peals  of  thunder." 

Such  was  the  company  to  whom  hen-pecked  Rip  Van  Winkle,  wandering 
upon  the  mountains  on  a  sciuirrcl  hunt,  was  introduced  by  a  mysterious 
stranger  carrying  a  keg  of  liquor,  at  autumnal  twilight.  And  there  it  was 
that  thirsty  Rip  di'ank  copiously,  went  to  sleep,  and  only  awoke  when 
twenty  years  had  rolled  away.  His  dog  Avas  gone,  and  his  rusty  gun- 
barrel,  bereft  of  its  stock,  lay  by  his  side.  He  doubted  his  identity.  He 
sought  the  village  tavern  and  its  old  frequenters ;  his  own  house,  and  his 
faithful  Wolf.  Alas!  evei-ythiiig  was  changed,  except  the  river  and  the 
mountains.     Only  one  thing  gave  him  real  joy — Dame  Van   Winkle's 


THE   HUDSON. 


155 


terrible  tongue  had  been  silenced  for  ever  by  death !  He  was  a  mystery 
to  all,  and  more  a  mystery  to  himself  than  to  others.  Whom  had  he  met 
in  the  mountains  ?  those  queer  fellows  that  reminded  him  of  "  the  figures 
in  an  old  Flemish  painting,  in  the  parlour  of  Dominic  Van  Schaick,  the 
village  parson.  Sage  Peter  Vonderdonck  was  called  to  explain  the 
mystery ;  and  Peter  successfully  responded.  Ho  asserted  that  it  was  a 
fact,  handed  down  from  his  ancestor,  the  historian,  that  the  Kaats-Kill 
Mountains  had  always  been  haunted  by  strange  beings.  That  it  was 
aflBrmed  that  the  great  Hendrick  Hudson,  the  first  discoverer  of  the  river 
and  country,  kept  a  kind  of  vigil  there  every  twenty  years,  with  his  crew 
of  the  Half-Moon,  being  permitted  in  this  way  to  revisit  the  scenes  of  his 
enterprise,  and  kept  a  guardian  eye  upon  the  river  and  the  great  city  called 
by  his  name.  That  his  father  had  once  seen  them,  in  their  old  Dutch 
dresses,  playing  at  nine-pins  in  a  hollow  of  the  mountain  ;  and  that  himself 
had  heard,  one  summer  afternoon,  the  sound  of  their  balls,  like  distant 
peals  of  thunder."  Eip's  veracity  was  vindicated  ;  his  daughter  gave  him 
a  comfortable  home ;  and  the  grave  historian  of  the  event  assures  us  that 
the  Dutch  inhabitants,  "even  to  this  day,  never  hear  a  thunder-storm 
of  a  summer  afternoon  about  the  Kaats-Kill,  but  they  say,  Hendrick 
Hudson  and  his  crew  are  at  their  game  of  nine-pins." 

The  Van  "Winkle  of  our  day,  who  lived  in  the  cottage  by  the  mountain 
road-side  as  long  as  a  guest  lingered  at  the  great  mansion  above  him,  was 
no  kin  to  old  Pip,  and  we  strongly  suspect  that  his  name  was  borrowed  ; 
but  he  kept  refreshments  that  strengthened  many  a  weary  toiler  up  the 
mountain — liquors  equal,  no  doubt,  to  those  in  the  "wicked  flagons"  that 
the  ancient  one  served  to  the  ghostly  company — and  from  a  rude  spout 
poured  cooling  draughts  into  his  cabin  from  a  mountain  spring,  more 
delicious  than  ever  came  from  the  juice  of  the  grape. 

There  arc  many  delightful  resting-places  upon  the  road,  soon  after 
leaving  Rip's  cabin,  as  we  toil  wearily  up  the  mountain,  where  the  eye 
takes  in  a  magnificent  panorama  of  hill  and  valley,  forest  and  river, 
hamlet  and  village,  and  thousands  of  broad  acres  where  herds  graze  and 
the  farmer  gathers  his  crops, — much  of  it  dimly  refined  because  of  distance 
— a  beautifully  coloured  map  rather  than  a  picture.  These  delight  the 
eye  and  quicken  the  pulse,  as  has  been  remarked ;  but  there  is  one  place 


156 


THE   HUDSON. 


upon  that  road  where  the  ascending  weary  ones  enjoy  more  exquisite 
pleasure  for  a  moment  tlian  at  any  other  point  in  all  that  mountain  region. 
It  is  at  a  turn  in  the  road  where  the  Mountain  House  stands  suddenly 
before  and  above  the  traveller,  revealed  in  perfect  distinctness — column, 
capital,  window,  rock,  people — all  apparently  only  a  few  rods  distant. 
There,- too,  the  road  is  level,  and  the  traveller  rejoices  in  the  assurance 
that  the  toilsome  journey  is  at  an  end  ;  when,  suddenly,  he  finds  himself, 
like  the  young  pilgrim  in  Cole's  "  Voyage  of  Life,"  disappointed  in  his 


MOL-M'AIX   HOUSJ:,   IROM   'llll';   R0.\1>. 


course.  The  road  that  seemed  to  he  leading  directly  to  that  beautiful 
mansion,  upon  the  crag  just  above  him,  turns  away,  like  the  stream  that 
appeared  to  be  taking  the  ambitious  young  voyager  directly  to  the  shadowy 
temple  of  Fame  in  the  clouds  ;  and  many  a  weary  step  must  be  taken, 
over  a  crooked,  hilly  road,  before  the  traveller  can  reach  the  object  of  his 
journey. 

The  grand  rock-platform,  upon  which  the  Mountain  House  stands,  is 
reached  at  last ;  and  then  comes  the  full  recompense  for  all  weari- 
ness.    Bathed — immersed — in  pure  mountain  air,  almost  three  thousand 


THE    HUDSON.  157 


feet  above  tide-water,  full,  positive,  enduring  rest  is  given  to  every 
muscle  after  a  half  hour's  respiration  of  that  invigorating  atmosphere  ; 
and  soul  and  limb  arc  ready  for  a  longer,  loftier,  and  more  rugged 
ascent. 

There  is  something  indescribable  in  the  pleasure  experienced  during  the 
first  hour  passed  upon  the  piazza  of  the  ITountain  House,  gazing  upon  the 
scene  toward  the  east.  That  view  has  been  described  a  thousand  times. 
I  shall  not  attempt  it.  Much  rhetoric,  and  rhyme,  and  sentimental 
platitudes  have  been  employed  in  the  service  of  description,  but  none  have 
conveyed  to  my  mind  a  picture  so  graphic,  truthful,  and  satisfactory  as 
'Natty  Bumpo's  reply  to  Edwai-d's  question,  in  one  of  Cooper's  "Leather- 
Stocking  Tales,"  "  What  see  you  when  you  get  there?" 

"^Creation  I  "  said  Watty,  dropping  the  end  of  his  rod  into  the  water, 
and  sweeping  one  hand  ai'ound  him  in  a  circle,  "  all  creation,  lad.  I  was 
on  that  hill  when  Yaughau  burnt 'Sopus,  in  the  last  war,  and  I  saw  the 
vessels  come  out  of  the  Highlands  as  plainly  as  I  can  see  that  lime-scow 
rowing  into  the  Susquehanna,  though  one  was  twenty  times  further  from 
me  than  the  other.*  The  river  was  in  sight  for  seventy  miles  under  my 
feet,  looking  like  a  curled  shaving,  though  it  was  eight  long  miles  to  its 
banks.  I  saw  the  hills  in  the  Hampshire  Grants,  the  Highlands  of  the 
river,  and  all  that  God  had  done,  or  man  could  do,  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
reach — you  know  that  the  Indians  named  me  for  my  sight,  ladf — and  from 
the  flat  on  the  top  of  that  mountain,  I  have  often  found  the  place  wlicre 
Albany  stands;  and  as  for 'Sopus!  the  day  the  royal  troops  burnt  the 
town,  the  smoke  seemed  so  nigh  that  I  thought  I  could  hear  the  screeches 
of  the  women." 

"  It  must  have  been  worth  the  toil,  to  meet  witli  such  a  glorious  view." 

"  If  being  the  best  part  of  a  mile  in  the  air,  and  having  men's  farms  at 
your  feet,  with  rivers  looking  like  ribands,  and  mountains  bigger  than  the 
'  Vision,'  seeming  to  be  haystacks  of  green  grass  under  you,  give  any 
satisfaction  to  a  man,  I  can  recommend  the  spot." 


*  Refereuce  is  here  made  to  the  buniing  of  the  village  of  Kingston  (whose  Indian  name  of  IC-so-pns 
wa9  retained  until  a  recent  period),  by  a  British  force  under  General  Valiglian,  in  the  Autumn  of  1777. 
t  " Hawlt-Eje." 


158  THE   HUDSON. 


The  aerial  pictures  seen  from  the  Mountain  House  are  sometimes 
marvellous,  especially  during  a  shower  in  the  plain,  when  all  is  sunshine 
above,  wliile  the  lightning  plays  and  the  thunder  rolls  far  below  the 
dwellers  upon  the  summits  ;  or  after  a  storm,  when  mists  are  driving  over 
the  mountains,  struggling  with  the  wind  and  sun,  or  dissolving  into 
invisibility  in  the  pure  air.  At  rare  intervals,  an  apparition,  like  the 
spectre  of  the  Brocken,  may  he  seen.  A  late  writer,  who  was  once  there 
during  a  summer  storm,  was  favoured  with  the  sight.  The  guests  were 
in  the  parlour,  when  it  was  announced  that  "the  house  was  going  past 
on  the  outside  !  "  All  rushed  to  the  piazza,  and  there,  sure  enough,  upon 
a  moving  cloud,  more  dense  than  the  fog  that  enveloped  the  mountain,  wa? 
a  perfect  picture  of  the  great  building,  in  colossal  proportions.  The  mass 
of  vapour  was  jmssing  slowly  from  north  to  south,  directly  in  front,  at  a 
distance,  apparently,  of  two  hundred  feet  from  the  building,  and  reflected 
the  noble  Corinthian  columns  which  ornament  the  front  of  the  building, 
every  window,  and  all  the  spectators.  The  cloud  moved  on,  and  "ere 
long,"  says  the  writer,  "we  saw  one  pillar  disappear,  and  then  another. 
AVc,  ourselves,  who  were  expanded  into  Brobdignags  in  size,  saw  the  gulf 
into  which  we  were  to  enter  and  ho  lost.  I  almost  shuddered  when  my 
turn  came,  but  there  was  no  eluding  my  fate ;  one  side  of  my  face  was 
veiled,  and  in  a  moment  the  whole  had  passed  like  a  dream.  An  instant 
before,  and  we  were  the  inhabitants  of  a  '  gorgeous  palace,'  but  it  was 
the  'baseless  fabric  of  a  vision,'  and  now  there  was  left  'not  a  wreck 
behind.' " 

As  a  summer  shower  passes  over  the  plain  below,  the  effect  at  the 
Mountain  House  is  sometimes  truly  gi-and,  even  when  the  lightning  is  not 
seen  or  the  thunder  heard.  A  young  woman  sitting  at  the  side  of  the 
writer  when  this  page  was  penned,  and  who  had  recently  visited  that 
eyrie,  recorded  her  vision  and  impressions  on  the  spot.  "The  whole 
scene  before  us,"  she  says,  "  was  a  vast  panorama,  constantly  varying  and 
changing.  The  blue  of  the  depths  and  distances — clouds,  mountains,  and 
shadows — was  such  that  the  perception  entered  into  our  very  souls.  How 
shall  I  describe  the  colour?  It  was  not  mazarine,  because  there  was  no 
blackness  in  it ;  it  was  not  sunlit  atmosphere,  because  there  was  no  white 
brightness  in  it ;  and  yet  there  was  a  sort  of  hidden,  beaming  brilliancy, 


THE    HUDSON.  159 


that  completely  absorbed  our  eyes  and  hearts.  It  was  not  the  blue  of  water, 
because  it  was  not  liquid  or  crystal-like ;  it  was  something  as  the  calm, 

soft,  lustre  of  a  steady  blue  eye And  how  various  were  the  forms 

and  motions  of  the  vapour !  Hills,  mountains,  domes,  pyramids,  wreaths 
and  sprays  of  mist  arose,  mounted,  hung,  fell,  curled,  and  almost  leaped 
before  us,  white  with  their  own  spotlessness,  but  not  bright  with  the  sun's 

rays,  for  the  luminary  was  still  obscured "Wc  looked  down  to 

behold  what  we  might  discover.     A  breath  of  heaven  cleared  the  mist 


VIEW  FROM  SOI'TII  MOUNTAIN. 

from  below, — softly  at  first,  but  gradually  more  decisive.  Larger  and 
darker  became  a  spot  in  the  magic  depths,  when,  lo  !  as  in  a  vision,  fields, 
trees,  fences,  and  the  habitations  of  men  were  revealed  before  our  eyes. 
For  the  first  time  something  real  and  refined  lay  before  us,  far  down  in 
that  wonderful  gulf.  Far  beneath  heaven  and  us  slept  a  speck  of  creation, 
unlighted  by  the  evening  rays  that  touched  us,  and  colourless  in  the 
twilight  obscurity.  Intently  we  watched  the  magic  glass,  but — did  we 
breathe  upon  its  surface  ? — a  mist  fell  before  us,  and  we  looked  up  as  if 
awakened  from  a  dream." 


160  THE    HUDSON. 


Although  the  Mountain  House  is  for  below  the  higher  summits  of  the 
range,  portions  of  four  States  of  the  Union,  and  an  area  of  about  ten 
thousand  square  miles,  arc  comprised  in  the  scope  of  vision  from  its  piazza. 
From  the  top  of  tlic  South  Mountain  near,  and  three  hundred  feet  above 
the  Mountain  House,  and  of  the  North  Mountain  more  distant  and  higher, 
a  greater  range  of  sight  may  bo  obtained,  including  a  portion  of  a  fifth 
State.  From  the  latter,  a  majestic  view  of  mountain  scenery,  and  of  the 
lowlands  southward,  may  be  obtained  at  the  price  of  a  little  fatigue,  for 
which  full  compensation  is  given.  The  Katers-Kill*  lakes,  lying  in  a 
basin  a  short  distance  from  the  Mountain  House,  with  all  their  grand 
surroundings,  the  house  itself,  and  the  South  Mountain,  and  the.  Eound 
Tup  or  Liberty  Cap,  form  the  middle  ground ;  while  in  the  dim  distance 
the  winding  Hudson,  with  the  Esopus,  Shawangunk,  and  Highland  ranges 
are  revealed,  the  borders  of  the  river  dotted  with  villas  and  towns 
appearing  mere  white  specks  on  the  landscape. 


>   OP  TM-^^ 


CHAPTEE 


^/FOE^ 


LITTLE   more  than   two   miles  from   the   Mountain 
House,    by   a  rough   road,    is    an    immense   gorge 
scooped  from  the  rugged  hills,  into  which  pours 
the  gentle  outlet  of  the  little  Katers-Kill  lakes,  in 
a  fall  first  of  one  hundi'ed  and  seventy-five  feet, 
and  close  to  it  another  of  eighty  feet.     The  falls 
have  been  so  well  described  by  the  "  Leather- 
stocking  "   ("Natty  Bumpo"),    that   a   better 
picture  cannot  be  drawn  : — 
'  There's  a  place,"  said  Natty,  after  describing  the  view  from 
the  Platform  Eock  at  the  Mountain  House,  "that  in  late  times  I 
relished  better  than  the  mountains,  for  it  was  more  kivered  by  the 
trees,  and  more  nateral." 

"  And  where  was  that?"  inquired  Edwards. 
"  Why,  there's  a  fall  in  the  hills,  where  the  water  of  two  little  ponds, 
that  lie  near  each  other,  breaks  out  of  their  bounds,  and  runs  over  the 
rocks  into  the  valley.  The  stream  is,  may  be,  such  a  one  as  would  turn 
a  mill,  if  so  useless  a  thing  was  wanted  in  the  wilderness.  But  the  hand 
that  made  that  '  Leap '  never  made  a  mill !  There  the  water  comes 
crooking  and  winding  among  the  rocks,  first  so  slow  that  a  trout  might 
swim  in  it,  and  then  starting  and  running,  just  like  any  creatur  that 
wanted  to  make  a  far  spring,  till  it  gets  to  where  the  mountain  divides 
like  the  cleft  hoof  of  a  deer,  leaving  a  deep  hollow  for  the  brook  to 
tumble  into.  The  first  pitch  is  nigh  two  hundred  feet,  and  the  water 
looks  like  flakes  of  driven  snow  afore  it  touches  the  bottom  ;  and  then  the 
stream  gathers  itself  together  again  for  a  new  start,  and  may  be  flutters 
over  fifty  feet  of  fiat  rock,  before  it  falls  for  another  hundred,  where  it 
jumps  about  from,  shelf  to  shelf,  first  turning  this-a-way,  and  then  turning 

T 


162 


THE    HUDSON. 


that-a-way,  striving  to  get  out  of  the  hollow,  till  it  finally  comes  to  the 

phiin The  rock  sweeps  like  mason-work  in  a  half-rountl  on  both 

sides  of  the  fall,  and  shelves  over  the  bottom  for  fifty  feet ;   so  that  when 
I've  been  sitting  at  the  foot  of  the  first  pitch,  and  my  hounds  have  run 


KATEES-KILL  FAILS. 


into  the  caverns  behind  the  sheet  of  water,  they've  looked  no  bigger  than 
so  many  rabbits.     To  my  judgment,  lad,  it's  the  best  piece  of  work  I've 
met  with  in  the  woods  ;  and  none  know  how  often  the  hand  of  God  is  seen 
in  the  wilderness,  but  them  that  rove  it  for  a  man's  life." 
"  Does  the  water  run  into  the  Delaware  ?  "  asked  Edwards. 


THE    HUDSON. 


1G3 


"  No,  no,  it's  a  drop  for  the  old  Hudson  :  and  a  merry  time  it  has  until 
it  gets  down  off  the  mountain." 

And  if  the  visitor  would  enjoy  one  of  the  wildest  and  most  romantic 
rambles  in  the  world,  let  him  follow  that  little  stream  on  its  way  "off  the 
mountains,"  down  the  deep,  dark,  mysterious  gorge,  until  it  joins  the 
Katers-Kill  proper,  that  rushes  through  the  "Clove"  from  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  Hunter,  among  the  hills  above,  and  thence  onward  to  the 
plain. 

It  was  just  after  a  storm  when  we  last  visited  these  falls.  The  traces 
of  "delicate-footed  May"  were  upon  every  shrub  and  tree.  Tiny  leaves 
were  just  unfolding  all  over  the  mountains,  and  the  snowy  dogwood 
blossoms  were  bursting  into  beauty  on  every  hand.  Yet  mementoes  of 
winter  were  at  the  falls.  In  the  cavern  at  the  back  of  them,  heaps  of  ice 
lay  piled,  and  a  chilling  mist  came  sweeping  up  the  gorge,  at  quick 
intervals,  filling  the  whole  amphitheatre  with  shadowy  splendour  when 
sunlight  fell  upon  it  from  between  the  dissolving  clouds.  A^Tiile 
sketching  the  cascades,  memory  recurred  to  other  visits  we  had  made  there 
in  midsummer,  when  the  wealth  of  foliage  lay  upon  tree  and  shrub  ;  and 
also  to  a  description  given  us  by  a  lady,  of  her  visit  to  the  falls  in  winter, 
with  Cole,  the  artist,  when  the  frost  had  crystallised  the  spray  into 
gorgeous  fret-work  all  over  the  rocks,  and  made  a  spendid  cylinder  of 
milk-white  ice  from  the  base  to  the  crown  of  the  upper  cascade.  Of  these 
phases  Bryant  has  sung  : — 


"  Midst  greens  and  sJiades  the  Katers-Kill  leaps, 
From  cliffs  where  the  wood-flower  clings; 
All  summer  he  moistens  his  verdant  steeps, 
Wilh  the  sweet  light  spray  of  the  mountain  springs  ; 
And  he  shakes  the  woods  on  the  mountain  side. 
When  they  di-ip  with  tlie  rains  of  autumn  tide. 

'But  when,  in  the  forests  bare  and  old, 
The  blast  of  December  calls. 
He  builds,  in  the  star-light  clear  and  cold, 
A  palace  of  ice,  where  his  torrent  falls, 
With  turret,  and  arch,  and  fret-work  fair. 
And  pillars  blue  as  the  summer  air." 


The  tourist,  if  he  fails  to  traverse  the  rugged  gorge,  should  not  omit 
a  ride  from  the  MountaLu  House,  down  through  the  "Clove"  to  Palensville 


164 


THE    HUDSON. 


and  tlic  pkin,  a  distance  of  about  eight  miles.  Unpleasant  as  was  the  day 
when  we  last  visited  the  mountains,  we  returned  to  Katz-Kill  by  that 
circuitous  route.  After  leaving  the  falls,  we  rode  about  three  miles  before 
reaching  the  "  Clove."  Huge  masses  of  vapour  came  rolling  up  from  its 
lower   depths,   sometimes   obscuring   everything   around   us,   and   then, 


THE  FAWN'S  LEAP. 


drifting  away,  laving  the  lofty  summits  of  the  mountains  that  stretch  far 
southward,  gleaming  in  tlie  fitful  sunlight,  and  presenting  unsurpassed 
exhibitions  of  aerial  perspective.  Down,  down,  sometimes  with  only  a 
narrow  space  between  the  base  of  a  high  mountain  on  one  side,  and  steep 


THE   HUDSON. 


165 


precipices  upon  the  other,  -whose  feet  are  washed  by  the  rushing  Katers- 
Kill,  our  crooked  road  pursued  its  way,  now  passing  a  log-house,  now  a 
pleasant  cottage,  and  at  length  the  ruins  of  a  leather  manufacturing  village, 
deserted  because  the  bark  upon  the  hills  around,  used  for  tanning,  is 
exhausted.     Near  this  picturesque  scene,  the  Katers-Kill  leaps  into  a 


SCENE  OX  THE  KATEKS-KILL,   NEAR  PAXENSVLLLE. 


seething  gulf  between  cleft  rocks,  and  flows  gently  on  to  make  still  greater 
plunges  into  darker  depths  a  short  distance  below.  This  cleft  in  the  rocks 
is  called  the  Fawn's  Leap,  a  young  deer  having  there  escaped  a  hunter 
and  his  dog,  that  pursued  to  the  verge  of  the  chasm.    The  fawn  leaped  it. 


166  THE    HUDSON. 


but  the  dog,  attempting  to  follow,  fell  into  the  gulf  below  and  was 
drowned.  The  foiled  hunter  went  home,  without  dog  or  game.  By  some, 
less  poetical  than  others,  the  place  is  called  the  Dog  Hole. 

A  few  rods  below  the  Fawn's  Leap,  the  road  crosses  a  rustic  bridge,  at 
the  foot  of  a  sheer  precipice,  and  for  half  a  mile  traverses  a  shelf  cut  from 
the  mountain  side,  two  hundred  feet  above  the  stream  that  has  found  its 
way  into  depths  so  dark  as  to  be  hardly  visible.  Upon  the  opposite  side 
of  the  creek  a  perpendicular  wall  rises  many  hundred  feet,  and  then  in 
slight  inclination  the  mountain  towers  up  at  least  a  thousand  feet  higher, 
and  forms  a  portion  of  the  range  known  as  the  South  Mountain.  At  the 
mouth  of  this  cavernous  gorge  lies  the  pretty  little  village  of  Palensville, 
where  we  again  cross  the  stream,  and  in  a  few  moments  find  ourselves 
upon  a  beautiful  and  highly  cultivated  plain.  From  this  point,  along  the 
base  of  the  mountains  to  the  road  by  which  we  enter  them,  or  more  directly 
to  Katz-Kill,  the  drive  is  a  delightful  one. 

From  the  lower  borders  of  Columbia  County,  opposite  Katz-Kill  village, 
to  Hyde  Park,  in  Duchess  County,  a  distance  of  thirty  miles,  the  east 
bank  of  the  Hudson  is  distinguished  for  old  and  elegant  couutry  seats, 
most  of  them  owned  and  occupied  by  the  descendants  of  wealthy 
proprietors  who  flourished  in  the  last  century,  and  were  connected  by 
blood  and  marriage  with  Robert  Livingston,  a  Scotch  gentleman,  of 
the  family  of  the  Earls  of  Linlithgow,  who  came  to  America  in  1672, 
and  married  a  member  of  the  Schuyler  family,  the  widow  of  a  Van 
Rensselaer.  He  lived  at  Albany,  and  was  secretary  to  the  Commissioners 
of  Indian  Aflfairs  for  a  long  time.  From  1684  to  1715  he  had,  from 
time  to  time,  purchased  of  the  Indians,  and  secured  by  patents  from  the 
English  crown,  large  tracts  of  land  in  the  present  Columbia  County. 
This  land  was  then  mostly  wild  and  unprofitable,  but  became  the  basis 
of  great  family  wealth. 

In  the  year  1710  Livingston's  grants  were  consolidated,  and  Hunter, 
the  royal  governor,  gave  him  a  patent  for  a  tract  of  a  little  more  than 
one  hundred  and  sixty-two  thousand  acres,  for  which  he  was  to  pay  into 
the  king's  treasury  "an  annual  rent  of  twenty-eight  shillings,  lawful 
money  of  New  York,"  a  trifle  over  fourteen  shillings  sterling !  This 
magnificent  estate  was  constituted   a   manor,  with  political   privileges. 


^ 


THE    HUDSON. 


167 


The  freeholders  upon  it  were  allowed  a  representative  in  the  colonial 
legislature,  chosen  by  themselves,  and  in  1716  the  lord  of  the  manor,  by 
virtue  of  that  privilege,  took  his  seat  as  a  legislator.  He  had  already 
built  a  manor-house,  on  a  grassy  point  upon  the  banks  of  the  Hudson,  at 


OLD  CLERMONT 

the  mouth  of  Roelefte  Jansen's  Kill,  or  Ancram  Creek,  of  which  hardly  a 
vestige  now  remains."^ 

The  lord  of  the  manor  gave,  by  his  will,  the  lower  portion  of  his 
domain  to  his  son  Robert,  who  built  a  finer  mansion  than  the  old  manor- 
house,  and  named  his  seat  Clermont.     This  was   sometimes  called  the 


*  In  the  yeai- 1710  Governor  Hunter,  by  order  of  Queen  Anne,  bought  of  Mr.  Livingston  6,000  acres 
of  his  manor,  for  the  sum  of  a  little  more  th;m  £200,  for  the  use  of  Protestant  Germans  then  in  England, 
who  had  been  driven  from  their  homes  in  the  Lower  Palatinate  of  the  Rhine,  then  tlie  dominions  of  a 
cousin  of  the  British  Queen.  About  1,800  of  them  settled  upon  the  manor  lands,  and  at  a  place  on  the 
opposite  shore  of  the  river,  the  respective  localities  being  known  as  East  and  West  Camp.  These 
Germans  were  called  Palatines,  and  are  represented  ixs  the  most  enlightened  people  of  their  native  land. 
Among  them  was  the  widow  Hannah  Zenger,  whose  son.  John  Peter,  apprenticed  to  William  Bradford, 
the  printer,  became,  in  after  life,  the  impersonation  of  the  struggling  democratic  idea.  He  published  a 
democratic  newspaper,  and  because  he  commented  freely  upon  the  conduct  of  the  royal  governor,  he 
was  imprisoned  and  prosecuted  for  a  hbel.  A  jurj'  acquitted  him,  in  the  midst  of  great  cheering  by  the 
people.  His  counsel  was  presented  with  the  freedom  of  the  city  of  New  York  in  a  gold  box.  By  that 
verdict  democratic  ideas,  and  the  freedom  of  the  press,  were  nobly  vindicated. 


168 


THE   HUDSOK. 


Lower  Manor-house.  Tlierc  Eobert  R.  Livingston,  the  eminent  Chan- 
cellor of  the  State  of  New  York,  and  associate  of  Eobert  Fulton,  in  his 
steamboat  experiments,  was  born.  After  his  marriage  he  built  a 
dwelling  for  himself,  a  little  south  of  Old  Clermont.  His  zeal  in  the 
Republican  cause,  at  the  kindling  of  the  revolution,  made  him  an  arch 
rebel  in  the  estimation  of  the  British  ministry  and  the  officers  in  the 
service  of  the  crown  in  America;  and  when,  in  the  autumn  of  1777, 
General  Vaughan,  at  the  head  of  the  royal  troops,  went  up  the  Hudson, 


CLERMONT. 


on  a  marauding  expedition,  to  produce  a  diversion  in  favour  of  Burgoyne, 
then  environed  by  the  American  army  at  Saratoga,  they  proceeded  as 
high  as  Clermont,  burnt  Livingston's  new  house,  and  the  old  one,  where 
he  was  born,  and  where  his  widowed  mother  resided,  and  then  retreated 
to  New  York.  Mrs.  Livingston  immediately  built  another  mansion  at 
Old  Clermont,  on  the  site  of  the  ruins,  which  was  occupied  by  Mr.  Cler- 
mont Livingston  when  these  sketches  were  prepared,  and  her  "rebel" 
son  erected  for  himself  a  more  elegant  one  than  that  which  had  been 
destroyed,  a  little  distance  from  the  ruins.    This  he  named  also  Clermont. 


THE   HUDSON.  169 


It  was  well  preserved  in  its  original  style  by  the  Misses  Clarkson,  the 
present  proprietors.  The  mansion  is  beautifully  situated,  and,  like  all 
the  villas  in  this  neighbourhood,  commands  a  fine  prospect  of  the  Katz- 
bergs.  It  was  described,  as  long  ago  as  1812,  as  "one  of  the  most 
commodious  houses  in  the  State,  having  a  river  front  of  104  feet,  and  a 
depth  of  91  feet,  and  consisting  of  a  main  body  of  two  stories  and  four 
pavilions,"  in  one  of  which  the  chancellor  had  "a  library  of  4,000  well- 
chosen  volumes."     There  he  died  in  the  spring  of  1813. 

"  Mr.  Livingston,"  says  a  contemporary,  "  was  a  very  useful  and 
benevolent  man,  a  scholar  of  profound  erudition,  an  ardent  patriot,  and  a 
prompt  and  decided  pi'omoter  of  all  the  essential  interests  of  the  country." 
He  took  special  interest  in  improvements  in  agriculture  and  manufactures, 
and  on  his  return  to  the  United  States,  from  an  embassy  to  France,  at  the 
beginning  of  the  present  century,  he  introduced  into  this  country  some  of 
the  finest  specimens  of  the  Merino  sheep,  from  the  celebrated  flock  of 
Eambouillet  in  France.  As  early  as  1812,  it  was  estimated  that  there 
were  in  the  United  States  at  least  60,000  descendants  of  the  Clermont 
flock,  of  which  about  1,000  were  at  Clermont. 

Mr.  Livingston's  chief  honour  as  a  man  of  science,  and  promoter  of 
useful  interests,  is  derived  from  his  aid  and  encouragement  in  efibrts 
which  resulted  in  the  entire  success  of  steam  navigation.  As  early  as 
1797,  he  was  engaged  with  an  Englishman  named  Nesbit  in  experiments. 
They  built  a  steamboat  on  the  Hudson  river,  at  a  place  now  known  as 
De  Koven's  Cove,  or  Bay,  about  half  a  mile  below  Tivoli,  or  Upper  Red 
Hook  Landing.  Brunei,  the  engineer  of  the  Thames  Tunnel,  and  father 
of  the  originator  and  constructor  of  the  Great  Eastern  steamship,  was  the 
engineer.  The  enterprise  was  not  successful.  Livingston  entered  upon 
other  experiments,  when  he  was  inten-upted  by  his  appointment  as 
United  States  minister  to  the  court  of  France.  In  Paris  he  became 
acquainted  with  Eobert  Fulton's  experiments  there.  "With  his  science 
and  money,  Livingston  joined  him.  They  succeeded  in  their  undertaking, 
as  proved  by  demonstrations  on  the  Seine,  returned  to  America,  and  in 
1806  imported  a  steam-engine,  made  by  Watt  and  Bolton,  in  England. 
A  boat  was  constructed  at  Bro^vn's  ship-yard,  in  New  York,  and  was 
completed  in  August,  1807,  when  it  was  propelled  by  its  machinery  to 


170 


THE    HUDSON, 


Hobokcn,  on  the  Jersey  shore,  where  John  Stevens  (Mr.  Livingston's 
brother-in-hiw)  had  beou  experimenting  in  the  same  direction  for  fifteen 
years.     That  first  successful  steamboat  was  named   Clermont^  in  compli- 


\IliW   AT   1>K   KUVK.N  S    BAi  . 


ment  to  Chancellor  Livingston,  and  made  her  first  voyage  to  Albany  at 
the  beginning  of  September,  1807. "^^ 

At  Tivoli  is  the  mansion  of  John  Swift  Livingston,  Esq.,  built  before 


*  The  Clermont  was  100  feet  long,  12  feet  wide,  and  7  feet  deep.    The  following  advert iae ment 
appeared  in  tlie  Albany  Gazette  on  the  1st  of  September,  1807:— 

"  The  Noi'th  Hirer  Steamboat  will  leave  Panlus's  Hook 
[Jersey  City]  on  Friday,  the  4lh  of  September,  at  9  in  the 
morning,  and  arrive  at  Albany  on  Satui'day,  at  9  in  the 
aftemoon.     Provisions,  good  berths,  and  accommodation  are 
provided.    The  charge  to  each  passenger  is  as  follows : — 
To  Newburgh,      Dollars,  3      Time,  H  hours. 
„    Ponglikeep&io      „       4         ,,17     „ 
„    Esopus  M       5         „      20     „ 

„    Hudson  „       5i       „      30      „ 

„    Albany  „       7         „      36     „ 

"]Mr.  Fulton's  new  steamboat,"  said  the  same  paper,  on 
tlie  5th  of  October,  "  left  New  York  on  the  2nd,  at  10  o'clock, 
A.M.,  against  a  strong  tide,  verj'  rough  water,  and  a  violent  gale  from  the  north.    She  made  a  headway, 
against  the  most  sangume  expectations,  and  without  being  rocked  by  tlie  waves !  " 


1UE   CLEIIJMO^T. 


THE    HUDSON. 


171 


the  war  for  independence.  It  is  surrounded  by  a  pleasant  park  and 
gardens,  and  commands  a  view  of  the  village  of  Saugertics,  on  the  west 
shore  of  the  Hudson,  and  that  portion  of  the  Katzbergs  on  which  the 
Mountain  House  stands.  That  building  may  be  seen,  as  a  white  spot  on 
the  distant  hills,  in  our  sketch.  Mr.  Livingston's  house  was  occupied  by 
one  of  that  name  when  the  Eritish  burnt  Old  Clermont  and  the  residence 
of  the  chancellor.  They  landed  in  De  Koven's  Cove,  or  Bay,  just  below, 
and  came  up  with  dtstructive  intent,  supposing  this  to  be  the  residence 


LIVIXGSTOK'S  MANSION  AT  TIVOLI. 


of  the  arch  oflfendei-.  The  proprietor  was  a  good-humoured,  hospitable 
man.  He  soon  convinced  the  invaders  of  their  ciTor,  supplied  them 
bountifully  with  wine  and  other  refreshments,  and  made  them  so  kindly 
and  cheery,  that  had  he  been  the  "rebel  "  himself,  they  must  have  spared 
his  property.  They  passed  on,  performed  their  destructive  errand,  partook 
of  the  good  things  of  Mr.  Livingston's  larder  and  wine-cellar  on  their 
return,  and  sailed  down  the  river  to  apply  the  torch  to  Kingston,  a  few 
miles  below. 

Opposite  Tivoli,  in  Ulster  County,  is  the  pleasant  village  of  Sanger- 


172 


THE   HUDSON. 


ties,*  near  the  mouth  of  the  Esopus  Creek,  -wliich  comes  flowing  from  the 
Boutli  tlirougli  a  beautiful  valley,  and  enters  tlie  Hudson  here.  Iron, 
paper,  and  -wlute-lead  arc  manufactured  there  extensively,  and  between 
the  river  and  the  mountains  are  almost  inexhaustible  quarries  of  flagging 
stone.  A  once  picturesque  fall  or  rapid,  around  which  a  portion  of  the 
village  is  clustered,  has  been  partially  destroyed  by  a  dam  and  unsightly 


MOITII   OF  ESOITS  CREEK,   SAUGEETIES. 


bridge  above  it,  yet  some  features  of  grandeur  and  beauty  remain.  The 
chief  business  part  of  the  village  lies  upon  a  plain  with  the  Katzbergs  for 
a  background,  and  on  the  high  right  bank  of  the  creek,  wliere  many  of 
the  first-class  residences  arc  situated,  an  interesting  view  of  the  mouth  of 
Zaeger's  Kill,  or  Esopus  Creek,  with  the  lighthouse,  river,  and  the  fertile 
lands  on  the  eastern  shore,  may  be  obtained.  Near  this  village  was  the 
West  Camp  of  the  Palatines,  already  mentioned. 

About  five  miles    below   Tivoli    is    Annandale,    the    seat    of    John 


'•  Incorporated  lister  in  1?31.  The  name  is  derived  from  the  Dutuli  word  Zaeger,  a  sawyer.  Peter 
Pietersen  having  built  a  saw-mill  at  tlje  Falls,  where  the  village  etands,  tlie  stream  was  colled  Sawyer^s 
Creek,  or  Zaeger's  Kill,  since,  by  con'uption,  Saiigerties. 


THE   HUDSON. 


173 


ST.   PIKMItN'ri   CL'LLEGE. 


Bard,  Esq.  As  we  approached  it  from  the  north  on  a  pleasant  day  in 
June,  along  the  picturesque  road  that  links  almost  a  score  of  heautiful 
villas,  the  attention  was  suddenly  arrested  by  the  appearance  of  an  elegant 
little  church,  built  of  stone  in  the  early  Anglo-Gothic  stylo,  standing  on 
the  verge  of  an  open  park.  Xear  it  was  a  long  building,  in  similar  style 
of  architecture,  in  course  of  erection.  On  inquiry,  we  found  the  church 
to  be  that  of  the  Holy  Innocents,  built  by  the  proprietor  of  Annandale 
upon  his  estate,  for  the  use  of  the  inhabitants  of  that  region  as  a  free 
chapel.  The  new  building  was  for 
St.  Stephen's  College,  designed  as  a 
training  school  for  those  who  are  pre- 
paring to  enter  the  General  Theological 
Seminary  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church,  in  New  York  city.  For  this 
purpose  Mr.  Bard  had  appropriated, 
as  a  gratuity,  the  munificent  sum  of 
60,000  dollars.  He  had  deeded  eigh- 
teen acres  of  land  to  the  College,  and  pledged  1,000  dollars  a  year  for  the 
support  of  a  professor  in  it.  The  institution  had  been  formally  recognised 
as  the  Diocesan  Training  College;  the  legislature  of  New  York  had 
granted  the  trustees'  an  act  of  incorporation,  and  liberal  subscriptions  had 
been  made  to  place  it  upon  a  stable  foundation.  In  the  midst  of  the 
grove  of  fine  old  trees  seen  in  the  direction  of  the  river  bank  from  the 
road  near  the  College,  stands  the  Villa  of  Annandale,  like  all  its 
neighbours  commanding  extensive  river  and  mountain  scenery. 

Adjoining  Annandale  on  the  south  is  Montgomery  Place,  the  residence 
of  the  family  of  the  late  Edward  Livingston,  brotlicr  of  the  Chancellor, 
who  is  distinguished  in  the  annals  of  his  country  as  a  leading  United 
States  senator,  the  author  of  the  penal  code  of  the  State  of  Louisiana,  and 
ambassador  to  Prance.  The  elegant  mansion  was  built  by  the  widow  of 
General  Eichard  Montgomery,  a  companion-in-arms  of  "Wolfe  when  he 
fell  at  Quebec,  and  who  perished  under  the  walls  of  that  city  at  the  head 
of  a  storming  party  of  P.cpublicans  on  the  31st  of  December,  1775. 
Montgomery  was  one  of  the  noblest  and  bravest  men  of  his  age.  "When 
he  gave  his  young  wife  a  parting  kiss  at  the  house  of  General  Schuyler, 


174 


THE   HUDSON. 


at  Saratoga,  and  hastened  to  join  that  officer  at  Ticonderoga,  in  the 
campaign  that  proved  fatal  to  him,  he  said,  "  You  shall  never  blush  for 
your  Montgomery."  Gallantly  did  he  vindicate  that  pledge.  And  when 
his  virtues  were  extolled  by  BaiTe,  Burke,  and  others  in  the  British 
parliament,  Lord  North  exclaimed,  "  Curse  on  his  virtues  ;  he  has  undone 
his  country." 

The  wife  of  Montgomery  was  a  sister  of  Chancellor  Livingston.     "With 
ample  pecuniary  means  and  good  taste  at  command,  she  built  this  mansion, 


MONTGO.MERi'   PLACE. 


and  there  spent  fifty  years  of  widowhood,  childless,  but  cheerful.  The 
mansion  and  its  400  acres  passed  into  the  possession  of  her  brother 
Edward,  and  there,  as  we  have  observed,  members  of  his  family  now  reside. 
Of  all  the  fine  estates  along  this  portion  of  the  Hudson,  this  is  said  to  be 
the  most  perfect  in  its  beauty  and  arrangements.  "Waterfalls,  picturesque 
bridges,  romantic  glens,  groves,  a  magnificent  park,  one  of  the  most 
beautiful  of  the  ornamental  gardens  in  this  country,  and  views  of  the  river 
and  mountains,  unsurpassed,  render  Montgomery  Place  a  retreat  to  be 
coveted,  even  by  the  most  favoured  of  fortune. 


THE    HUDSON. 


175 


Four  miles  by  the  railway  below  Tivoli  is  the  Barrytown  Station,  or 
Lower  Eed  Hook  Landing.  The  villages  of  Upper  and  Lower  Eed  Hook, 
like  most  of  the  early  towns  along  the  Hudson,  lie  back  from  the  river. 
Tivoli  and  Barrytown  are  their  respective  ports.  A  short  distance  below 
the  latter,  connected  by  a  winding  avenue  with  the  public  road  already 
mentioned,  is  Rokeby,  the  seat  of  William  B.  Astor,  Esq.,  who  is 
distinguished  as  the  wealthiest  man  in  the  United  States.  It  was  formerly 
the  residence  of  his  father-in-law,  General  John  Armstrong,  an  officer  in 


the  war  for  independence,  and  a  member  of  General  Gates's  military 
family.  Armstrong  was  the  author  of  the  celebrated  addresses  which 
were  privately  circulated  among  the  officers  of  the  Continental  Army  lying 
at  Newburgh,  on  the  Hudson,  at  the  close  of  the  war,  and  calculated  to 
stir  up  a  mutiny,  and  even  a  rebellion  against  the  civil  power.  The  feeble 
Congress  had  been  unable  for  a  long  time  to  provide  for  the  pay  of  the 
soldiers  about  to  be  disbanded  and  sent  home  in  poverty  and  rags.  There 
was  apathy  in  Congress  and  among  the  people  on  the  subject;  and  these 
addresses  were  intended  to  stir  up  the  latter  and  their  representatives  to 


176 


THE   HUDSON. 


the  performance  of  their  duty  in  making  some  provision  for  theu-  faithful 
servants,  rather  than  to  excite  the  army  to  take  affairs  into  their  own 
hand,  as  was  charged.  Through  the  wisdom  and  firmness  of  Washington, 
the  event  was  so  overruled  as  to  give  honour  to  the  army  and  benefit  the 
country.  Washington  afterwards  acquitted  Major  Armstrong  of  all  evil 
intentions,  and  considered  his  injudicious  movement  (instigated,  it  is 
supposed,  by  Gates)  as  a  patriotic  act. 

Armstrong  afterwards  married  a  sister  of  Chancellor  Livingston,  and 


was  chosen  successively  to  a  seat  in  the  United  States  senate,  an 
ambassador  to  France,  a  brigadier-general  in  the  army,  and  secretary-of- 
war.  He  held  the  latter  ofiice  while  England  and  the  United  States  were 
at  war,  in  1812-14.  He  was  the  author  of  a  "Life  of  General  Mont- 
gomery," "Life  of  General  Wayne,"  and  "Historical  Notices  of  the  War 
of  1812."  llokeby,  where  this  eminent  man  lived  and  died,  is  delightfully 
situated,  in  the  midst  of  an  undulating  park,  farther  from  the  river  than 
the  other  villas,  but  commanding  some  interesting  glimpses  of  it,  with 
more  distant  landscapes  and  mountain  scenery.  Among  the  latter  may 
be  seen  the  range  of  the  Shawangunk  (pronounced  shon-gum),  in  the  far 


THE   HUDSON.  177 


south-west.  Here  Mr.  Astor's  family  reside  about  eight  months  of  the 
year. 

A  few  miles  below  Eokeby,  and  lying  upon  an  elevated  plain  two  miles 
from  the  river,  is  the  beautiful  village  of  Rhinebeck,  containing  little 
more  than  1,000  inhabitants.  The  first  settler  was  "William  Beekman,  or 
Beckman,  who  came  from  the  Rhine,  in  Germany,  in  1647,  purchased  all 
this  region  from  the  Indians,  and  gave  homes  to  several  poor  families  who 
came  with  him.  The  name  of  the  river  in 
his  fatherland,  and  his  own,  are  commemo- 
rated in  the  title  of  the  town — Rhine-Beck. 
The  house  built  by  him  is  yet  standing,  upon 
a  high  point  near  the  Rhinebeck  station. 
It  is  a  stone  building.  The  bricks  of  which 
the   chimney   is   constructed  were   imported 

from  Holland.     In  thi^  house  the  first  public  ,,^   „,.'-„o,«i- 

religious  services  in  that  region  were  held, 

and  it  was  used  as  a  fortress  in  early  times,  against  the  Indians.  It 
now  belongs  to  the  Hecrmance  family,  descendants  of  early  settlers 
there.  .Beekman's  son,  Henr}-,  afterwards  procured  a  patent  from  the 
English  government  for  a  very  extensive  tract  of  land  in  Duchess  County, 
including  his  Rhinebeck  estate. 

Just  below  the  Rhinebeck  Station  is  Ellerslie,  the  seat  of  the  Hon. 
"William  Kelly.  No  point  on  the  Hudson  commands  a  more  interesting 
view  of  the  river  and  adjacent  scenery,  than  the  southern  front  of  the 
mansion  at  EUerslie.  The  house  is  at  an  elevation  of  two  hundred  feet 
above  the  river,  overlooking  an  extensive  park.  The  river  is  in  full  view 
for  more  than  fourteen  miles.  At  the  distance  of  about  thirty-five  miles 
are  seen  the  Fish-Kill  Mountains,  and  the  Hudson  Highlands,  while  on 
the  west,  the  horizon  is  bounded  by  the  lofty  Katzbergs. 

EUerslie  is  ninety  miles  from  New  York  city,  and  contains  about  seven 
hundred  acres  of  land,  with  a  front  on  the  river  of  a  mile  and  a-half.  Its 
character  is  different  from  that  of  an  ordinary  villa  residence,  being 
cultivated  with  much  care  as  a  farm,  whilst  great  regard  is  had  to 
improving  its  beauty,  and  developing  landscape  effects.  The  lawn  and 
gardens  occupy  thirty  acres;  the  greenhouse,  graperies,  &c.,  are  among 

A.   A 


178 


THE    HUDSON. 


the  most  complete  in  this  coimtiy.  The  park  contiiLns  three  hundred 
acres ;  its  surface  is  undulated,  -with  masses  of  old  trees  scattered  over  it, 
and  upon  it  feeds  a  large  herd  of  thorough-bred  Durham  cattle,  which  the 
proprietor  considers  a  more  appropriate  ornament  than  -would  be  a  herd 
of  deer. 

A  mile  below  Ellerslie  is  Wildercliff,*  the  seat  of  Miss  Mary  GaiTettson, 
daughter  of  the  eminent  Methodist  preacher,  Freeborn  Garrettson,  -who 
married  a  sister  of  Chancellor  Livingston.     The  mansion  is  a  very  modest 


ELLERSLIE. 


one,  compared  with  some  in  its  neighbourhood.  It  was  built  in  accordance 
with  the  simple  tastes  of  the  original  proprietor.  Mr.  Garrettson  was  a 
leader  among  the  plain  Methodists  in  the  latter  part  of  the  last  century, 
when  that  denomination  was  beginning  to  take  fast  hold  upon  the  public 
mind  in  America,  and  his  devoted,  blameless  life  did  much  to  commend 
his  people  to  a  public  disposed  to  deride  them. 


*  More  properly  Wilder  Ktippc.  Tliis  is  a  Dutch  word,  signifying  wild  man's,  or  wild  Indian's, 
diffe.  The  fii-st  settlers  found  upon  a  smooth  rock,  on  the  river  shore,  at  this  place,  a  rude  delineation 
of  two  Indians,  one  with  a  tomahawk,  and  the  other  a  calumet,  or  pipe  of  peace.  This  gave  them  the 
idea  of  the  name. 


THE    HUDSON. 


179 


The  very  beautiful  view  from  this  mansion,  down  the  river,  is 
exceedingly  charming  for  its  simple  beauty,  so  much  in  harmony  with 
the  associations  of  the  place.  In  the  centre  of  the  lawn  stood  a  sun-dial. 
On  the  left  was  a  magnificent  wide-spreailing  elm.  On  the  right,  through 
the  trees,  might  be  seen  the  cultivated  western  shore  of  the  Hudson,  with 
the  mountains  beyond,  and  in  front  was  the  river,  stretching  away  south- 
ward, at  all  times  dotted  with  the  white  sails  of  water-craft.  This 
mansion   has   many  associations  connected  with  the  early  struggles  of 


vi;-:w  FnoM  wjLriEncLiFF. 


Methodism,  very  dear  to  the  hearts  of  those  who  love  that  branch  of  the 
Christian  church. 

When  Mr.  Garrettson  left  the  Church  of  England,  in  which  he  had 
been  educated,  the  Methodists  were  despised  in  most  places.  He  was  a 
native  of  Maryland.  Eminently  conscientious,  he  gave  his  slaves  their 
freedom,  and  entering  upon  his  ministry,  preached  everywhere,  on  all 
occasions  and  at  all  times,  offending  the  wicked  and  delighting  the  good, 
and  fearless  of  all  men,  having  full  fuith  in  a  special  Providence,  and 
oftentimes  experiencing  proofs  of  the  truth  of  the  idea  to  which  he  clung. 
One  example  of  his  proofs  may  be  cited.     A  mob  had  seized  him  on  one 


180  THE   aCDSON. 


occasion,  and  wcrG  taking  him  to  prison  by  order  of  a  magistrate,  -wlien 
a  flash  of  lightning  dispersed  them,  and  they  left  him  unmolested.  In 
1788  he  was  appointed  Presiding  Elder  over  the  churches  in  the  district, 
extending  from  Long  Island  Sound  to  Lake  Champlain,  more  than  two 
humb-ed  miles.  One  of  his  converts  was  the  daughter  of  Judge  Livingston, 
of  Clermont.  Mr.  Garrettson  married  her  in  1793,  and  six  years  after- 
wards they  built  the  mansion  at  WilderclifF.  Probably  no  house  in  the 
world  has  ever  held  within  it  so  many  Methodist  preachers  as  this,  from 
the  most  humble  of  "weak  vessels"  up  to  Bishop  Asbnry,  and  other 
dignitaries  of  the  church  ;  for,  with  ample  means  at  command,  the  doors 
of  Mr.  Garrettson  and  his  wife  were  ever  open  to  all,  especially  to  their 
brethren  in  the  ministry.  And  that  generous  hospitality  is  yet  dispensed 
by  the  daughter,  whose  tabic  is  seldom  without  a  guest. 


CHAPTER    X. 

2  PPOSITE  Rhinebeck  Station  is  the  old  Kingston  Landing, 
where  the  three  thousand  Rritish  troops  under  General 
Vaughan  disembarked,  and  marched  to  the  village  of 
Kingston,  two   miles  in  the  interior,   and  laid  it  in 
ashes.     That  point  was  the  port  of  Kingston   until 
within  a  few  years,  and  the  New  York  and  Albany  steamboats 
stopped  there,  but  the  thriving  village  at  the  mouth  of  the  Eondout 
j,v         Creek,  about  a  mile  below,  has  caused  it  to  be  abandoned. 
'^'V  The  village  of  Kingston  (originally  called  Esopus) — situated 

•upon  a  broad  plain  on  the  banks  of  the  Esopus  Creek,  with  a 
fine  range  of  the  southern  Katz  bergs  in  the  rear — is  one  of  the  oldest 
settlements  in  the  State  of  K^ew  York.*  As  early  as  1614,  Dutch  traders 
built  a  redoubt  at  the  mouth  of  Eondout  (a  corruption  of  Eedoubt)  Creek. 
A  few  families  settled  soon  afterwai'ds  upon  or  near  the  site  of  Kingston, 
and  called  the  place  Wiltwyck,  or  Wild  Indian  Town.  They  were  soon 
dispersed  by  the  savages.  Another  settlement  then  followed ;  again  the 
savages  dispersed  them.  Finally,  in  1660,  a  treaty  was  concluded  that 
seemed  to  promise  security  to  the  settlers.  But  the  wrath  of  the  Indians 
became  fiercely  kindled  against  the  white  people  by  Governor  Stuyvesant, 
who  sent  eleven  Indian  captives  to  Cui-aqoa,  and  sold  them  for  slaves. 
In  June,  1663,  the  Indians  cam§  into  the  open  fort  in  great  numbers, 
professedly  to  trade.  At  a  concerted  signal  they  fell  upon  the  white 
people,  mui'dered  eighteen  of  them,  and  carried  away  forty-two  as 
captives.  The  out  settlements  were  all  destroyed.  A  destructive  war 
ensued.  The  Indians  were  expelled  from,  the  fort,  and  nine  days  after- 
wards a  reinforcement  came  from  New  Amsterdam.  The  savages  were 
pursued  and  almost  exterminated.  In  the  autumn  they  returned  all  the 
captives  but  three,  and  sued  for  peace. 

*  The  Indians  appropriately  called  tMs  spot  At-kan-karten,  Smooth  Land. 


182 


THE   HUDSON. 


Many'of  the  persecuted  Huguenot  families  who  fled  from  France  settled 
at  Kingston  and  in  its  vicinity,  towards  the  close  of  the  seventeenth 
century;  and  when  the  war  for  independence  broke  out  in  1775,  their 
descendants  were  found  on  the  side  of  the  republicans.  Kingston  was 
called  a  "nest  of  rebels."  There,  in  the  spring  of  1777,  the  representatives 
of  the  people  of  the  State  formed  a  state  constitution,  and  organised  civil 
government  under  it.  The  first  session  of  the  legislature  was  held  there 
in  July  following,  but  the  members  were  obliged  to  flee  in  the  autumn,  on 


Wfrm: 


the  approach  of  Vaughan  and  his  troops.  These  ascended  the  river  from 
the  Highlands,  where  Sir  Henry  Clinton  had  gained  a  victory,  taken 
possession  of  Forts  Clinton  and  Montgomery,  and  destroyed  the  obstructions 
in  the  river  which  prevented  vessels  passing  northward.  The  object  of 
Vaughan's  expedition,  as  wo  have  said,  was  to  draw  the  attention  of  Gates 
and  his  army  (then  casting  their  meshes  around  Burgoyne)  to  the  country 
below,  where  devastation  and  ruin  were  threatened.  After  passing  the 
Highlands,  they  distressed  the  people  along  the  shores  of  the  river  very 
much  by  burnings  and  plunderings.     They  landed  at  the  port  of  Esopus, 


THE   HUDSON.  183 


or  Kingston,  on  the  13tli  of  October,  and  proceeded  to  tte  village  in  two 
divisions.  The  town  contained  about  300  inhabitants,  and  the  houses  were 
mostly  of  stone.  The  people  fled  with  what  property  they  could  carry 
■  away,  and  the  soldiery  burned  every  house  but  one. 

It  is  related  that  when  the  British  landed  at  Kingston  Point,  some 
Dutchmen  were  at  work  just  below  it,  and  were  not  aware  of  the  fact 
until  they  saw  the  dreaded  "red-coats"  near  them.  It  was  low  water, 
and  across  the  flats  on  the  river  shore  they  fled  toward  the  place  of  the 
present  village  of  Eondout  as  fast  as  their  legs  could  carry  them,  not 
presuming  to  look  behind  them,  lest,  like  Lot's  wife,  they  might  be  detained. 
The  summer  haymakers  had  left  a  rake  on  the  marsh  meadow,  and  upon 
this  one  of  the  fugitives  trod.  The  handle  flew  up  behind  him,  and  gave 
him  a  severe  blow  on  the  back  of  his  head.  Not  doubting  that  a 
"Britisher"  was  close  upon  his  heels,  he  stopped  short,  and  throwing  up 
his  hands  imploringly,  exclaimed,  "0  mcLn.  Got!  mein  Got!  I  kivs  up. 
Hoorah  for  King  Shorge  !  "  The  innocent  rake  was  all  the  enemy  that 
was  near,  and  the  fugitive's  sudden  conversion  was  known  only  to  a 
companion  in  the  race,  who  had  outstripped  him  a  few  paces. 

Hurley,  a  few  miles  from  Kingston,  became  the  place  of  refuge  for  the 
sufferers  from  the  conflagration  of  the  latter  town.  There,  while  Esopus 
was  in  flames,  the  republicans  hanged  a  spy,  who  had  been  caught  in  the 
American  camp  near  Newburgh,  a  few  days  before.  He  had  been  sent  by 
Sir  Henry  Clinton  with  a  message  to  Burgoyne.  When  apprehended  on 
suspicion,  he  was  seen  to  cast  something  into  his  mouth  and  swallow  it. 
An  emetic  was  administered,  and  a  silver  bullet,  hollow  and  elliptical  in 
shape,  was  produced.  In  it,  written  upon  tissue  paper,  was  the  following 
note,  dated  Fort  Montgomery,  October  8,  1777  :  — 

"  Nous  y  void,  and  nothing  now  between  us  and  Gates.  I  sincerely 
hope  this  little  succour  of  ours  may  facilitate  your  operation.  In  answer 
to  your  letter  of  the  28th,  by  C.  C,  I  shall  only  say  I  cannot  presume  to 
order,  or  even  advise,  for  reasons  obvious.     I  heartily  wish  you  success. 

"Faithfully  yours,  "  H.  Cli^jton." 

The  prisoner  was  tried  :  out  of  his  own  mouth  he  was  condemned.     He 
was  taken  to  Hurley,  and  there  hanged  upon  an  apple-tree.     That  silver 


184 


THE   HUDSON. 


bullet  and  the  note  arc  preserved  in  tlie  family  of  Governor  George 
Clinton. 

Kingston  village  is  a  very  pleasant  one,  and  the  country  ahout  it  affords 
delightful  drives.  Its  popidation  in  1860  was  about  4,000,  and  the  space 
between  it  and  Rondout,  a  mile  and  a  lialf  distant,  was  rapidly  filling  up 
with  dwellings.  The  two  villages  were  already  connected  by  gas-pipes, 
and  public  conveyances  ply  between  them  continually. 

Rondout  (Redoubt),  at  the  mouth  of  Rondout  Creek,  is  one  of  the 
busiest  places  on  the  river  between  Albany  and  New  York.  It  was 
formerly  called  the  Strand,  then  Kingston  Landing,  and  finally  Bolton, 


HONDOUT  CIIELK. 


in  honour  of  the  then  president  of  the  Delaware  and  Hudson  Canal 
Company.  That  canal,  which  penetrates  the  coal  region  of  Pennsylvania, 
has  its  eastern  terminus  at  Eddyvillc,  two  and  a  half  miles  up  the 
Rondout  Creek ;  and  the  mouth  of  that  stream  is  continually  crowded 
with  vessels  engaged  in  carrying  coals  and  other  commodities.  Immense 
piers  have  been  erected  in  the  middle  of  the  stream  for  the  reception  and 
forwarding  of  coal.  Here,  and  in  the  vicinity,  are  manufactories  of 
cement,  and  also  extensive  quarries  of  flagstone— all  of  which,  with  the 


THE    HUDSON. 


185 


agricultural  products  of  the  adjacent  country,  giving  freights  to  twenty 
steamhoats  and  many  sailing  vessels.  Lines  of  steamers  run  regularly 
from  Rondout  to  Albany  and  ISTew  York,  and  intermediate  places,  and  a 
steam  ferry-boat  connects  the  place  with  the  Rhinebeck  Station. 

The  population  of  Eondout  was  about  6,000  in  1860.  The  greater 
proportion  of  tiic  able-bodied  men  and  boys  were,  in  some  way,  connected 
with  the  coal  business.  Another  village,  the  offspring  of  the  same  trade, 
and  of  very  recent  origin,  stands  just  below  the  mouth  of  the  Rondout 
Creek.  It  was  built  entirely  by  the  Pennsylvania  Coal  Company.  From 
that  village,  laid  out  in  1851,  'and  containing  a  population  of  about 
1,400  souls,  a  large  portion  of  the  coal  brought  to  the  Hudson  on  the 
canal  was  shipped  in  barges  for  the  north  and  west.  It  is  called  Port 
Ewen,  in  honour  of  John  Ewen,  then  president  of  the  company. 

Placentia  is  the  name  of  the  beautifully  situated  country  seat  of  the 
late  James  Ku'ke  Paulding,  a  mile  above  tlio  village  of  Hyde  Park,  and 
seven  north  from  Poughkeepsic.  It  stands  upon  a  gentle  eminence,  over- 
looking a  pleasant  park  of  many  acres,  and  commanding  an  extensive 
prospect  of  a  fertile  farming  country  on  both  sides  of  the  river.  Almost 
opposite  Placentia  is  the  model  farm  of  Robert  L.  Pell,  Esq.,  whoso 
apples,  gathered  from  thousands  of  trees,  are  familiar  to  those  who  make 
purchases  in  the  American  and  English  fruit  markets.  Placentia  has  no 
history  of  special  interest.  It  is  a  simple,  beautiful  retreat,  now  conse- 
crated in  memory  as  the  residence  of  a  venerable  novelist  and  poet — the 
friend  and  associate  of  "Washington  Irving  in  his  early  literary  career. 
They  were  associated  in  the  conducting  of  an  irregular  periodical  entitled 
"  Salmagundi,"  the  principal  object  of  which  was  to  satirise  the  follies 
and  foibles  of  fashionable  life.  Contrary  to  their  expectation,  it  obtained 
a  wide  circulation,  and  they  found  many  imitators  throughout  the 
country.  It  was  brought  to  an  abrupt  conclusion  by  the  refusal  of  the 
publisher  to  allow  them  any  compensation.  Paulding  and  Irving  were 
personal  friends  through  a  period  of  more  than  fifty  years.  Mr.  Paulding 
lived  in  elegant  retirement,  at  his  country  seat,  for  many  years,  enjoying 
his  books,  his  pictures,  and  his  friends.  He  passed  away,  at  the 
beginning  of  1860,  at  the  age  of  more  than  fourscore  years. 

Our  last  visit  to  Placentia  was  at  the  close  of  a  most  delightful  afternoon 


I 


186 


THE    HUDSON. 


in  early  June.  A  sweet  repose  rested  upon  land  and  water.  The  golden 
sun  was  delicately  veiled  in  purple  exhalations,  and  over  all  the  scene 
silence  deepened  the  solemnity  of  the  thought  that  we  were  treading 
paths  where  a  child  of  genius  had  daily  walked,  but  who  had  lately 
turned  aside  to  be  laid  to  rest  in  the  cool  shadows  of  the  tomb. 

The  village  of  Hyde  Park  is  upon  a  pleasant  plain,  high  above  the 
river,  and  half  a  mile  from  it.  It  received  its  name  from  Peter  Faulconier, 
the  private  secretary  of  Sir  Edward  Hyde  (afterwards  Lord  Cornbury), 


the  governor  of  the  province  of  New  York  at  the  beginning  of  the  last 
century.  Faulconier  purchased  a  large  tract  of  land  at  this  place,  and 
named  it  Hyde  Park  in  honour  of  the  governor.  Here  the  aspect  of  the 
western  shores  of  the  river  changes  from  gently  sloping  banks  and 
cultivated  fields  to  rocky  and  precipitous  bluffs ;  and  this  character  they 
exhibit  all  the  way  to  Hoboken,  opposite  New  York,  with  few 
interruptions. 

At  Hyde  Park  the  river  makes  a  sudden  bend  between  rocky  bluffs, 
and  in  a  narrower  channel.  On  account  of  this  the  Dutch  settlers  called 
the  place  Krom  Elleboge,  or  Crooked  Elbow.     As  is  frequently  the  case 


THE  HUDSON. 


18: 


along  tke  Hudson,  the  present  name  is  a  compound  of  Dutch,  and  English, 
and  is  called  Croni  Elbow. 

Six  miles  below  Hyde  Park  is  the  large  rural  city  of  Poughkeepsie, 
containing  about  17,000  inhabitants.  The  name  is  a  modification  of  the 
Mohegan  word,  Apo-lceep-smch,'"  signifying  "  safe  and  pleasant  harbour." 
Between  two  rocky  bluffs  was  a  sheltered  bay  (now  filled  with  wharves). 


POUGHKEEPSIE,  FKO.M  LEWISBUEG. 

into  the  upper  part  of  which  leaped,  in  rapids  and  cascades,  the  Winnakee, 
called  Fall  Kill  by  the  Dutch.     The  northerly  bluff  was  called  by  the 

*  The  name  of  this  city,  as  found  in  records  and  on  maps,  exhibits  a  most  cmious  specimen  of  ortho- 
graphic caprice,  it  hemg  spelt  m  forty-two  different  ways,  as  follows  :— Pakeepsie,  Pacapsey,  Pakepsey, 
Pauglikepsie.  Pecapesy,  Pecapsy,  Pecapshe,  Poclikeepsinck,  Poeghkeepsing,  Poeghkeeksingk,  Poegh- 
keepsink,  Pochkeepsey,  Pochkeepsen,  Poclikeepsj',  Pochkepsen,  Pochkj-phsingh,  Pockeepsy,  Pockep- 
seick,  Pockepseng.  Pokepsing,  Poghkeepsie,  Poglikeepsinck,  Poghkeepsing,  Poghkepse,  Poglikepsen, 
Poghkeepsink,  Poghkeepson,  Poghkeepse,  Pokeepsigh,  Pokeepsiiigh,  Pokeepsink,  Pokeepsy,  Pokepsinck, 
Pokkepsen,  Poughkeepsey,  Poukeepsie,  Poukeepsy,  Pikipsi,  Picipsi,  Pokepsie,  Pokeepsie,  Poughkeepsie. 


188  THE   HUDSON. 


Dutcli  Slange  Klipiye,  or  Snake  or  Adder  Cliff,  because  of  the  venomous 
serpents  wliicli  wore  abundant  there  in  the  oklon  time.  The  southcru 
bluff  bears  the  name  of  Call  llock,  it  having  been  a  place  from  which  the 
settlers  called  to  the  captains  of  sloops  or  single-masted  vessels,  when 
passage  in  them  was  desired.  "With  this  bay,  or  "  safe  harbour,"  is 
associated  an  Indian  legend,  of  which  the  following  is  the  substance  : — 
Once  some  Delaware  warriors  came  to  this  spot  with  Pequod  captives. 
Among  the  latter  was  a  young  chief,  who  was  offered  life  and  honour  if 
he  would  renounce  his  nation,  receive  the  mark  of  the  turtle  upon  his 
breast,  and  become  a  Delaware  bravo.  He  rejected  the  degrading 
proposition  with  disdain,  and  was  bound  to  a  tree  for  sacrifice,  when  a 
shriek  from  a  thicket  startled  the  executioners.  A  young  girl  leaped 
before  them,  and  implored  his  life.  She  was  a  captive  Pequod,  with  the 
turtle  on  her  bosom,  and  the  young  chief  was  her  affianced.  The 
Delawares  debated,  when  suddenly  the  war-whoop  of  some  fierce  Hurons 
made  them  snatch  their  arms  for  defence.  The  maiden  severed  the 
thongs  that  bound  her  lover,  but  in  the  deadly  conflict  that  ensued,  they 
were  separated,  and  a  Huron  chief  carried  off  the  captive  as  a  trophy. 
Her  affianced  conceived  a  bold  design  for  her  rescue,  and  proceeded 
immediately  to  execute  it.  In  the  character  of  a  wizard  he  entered  the 
Huron  camp.  The  maiden  was  sick,  and  her  captor  employed  the  wizard 
to  prolong  her  Ufe,  until  he  should  satisfy  his  revenge  upon  Uncas,  her 
uncle,  the  great  chief  of  the  Mohegans.  They  eluded  the  vigilance  of 
the  Huron,  fled  at  nightfall,  with  swift  feet,  towards  the  Hudson,  and  in 
the  darkness,  shot  out  upon  its  bosom,  in  a  light  canoe,  followed  by 
blood-thirsty  pursuers.  The  strong  arm  of  the  young  Pequod  paddled  his 
beloved  one  safely  to  a  deep  rocky  nook  near  the  mouth  of  the  Winnakee, 
concealed  her  there,  and  with  a  few  friendly  Delawares  whom  he  had 
sccui-ed  by  a  shout,  he  fought,  conquered,  and  drove  off  the  Huron 
warriors.  The  sheltered  nook  where  the  maiden  lay  was  a  mfr  harlour 
for  her,  and  the  brave  Pequod  and  his  friends  joyfully  confirmed  its  title 
to  Apo-lceep-sinch. 

Poughkeepsie  was  settled  by  the  Dutch  at  the  close  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  The  first  substantial  stone  building  was  erected  not  far  from 
the  Winnakee,  by  Baltus  Van  Klcek,  in  the  year  1705,  and  remained  a 


THE   HUDSON.  189 


hundred  and  thirty  years,  when  it  made  way  for  modern  improvements. 
This  house,  like  many  others  huUt  so  early,  was  pierced  with  loop- 
holes for  musketry,  near  the  roof,  that  beina-  n  ncrrpsnry  precaution 
against  attacks  by  the  Indians.     It  was 

the  scene  of  stirring  events,  being  for  _  ^_ 

many  years  a  tavern,  and  the  gathering 
place  of  the  people.  When  the  old 
court-house  was  burned  at  the  outbreak 
of  the  revolution,  it  became  the  meeting 
place  of  the  citizens  for  public  purposes. 
There    Ann   Lee,   the    founder   of  the 


Shaker   church  in  America,   was   con- 

.  THE  VAX  KLEEK   HOUSE. 

lined,  m  1776,  on  a  charge  of  com- 
plicity with  the  enemies  of  republicanism.  There  the  legislature  of 
New  York,  when  driven  by  the  torch  from  Kingston,  in  1777,  met,  and 
continued  during  two  sessions ;  and  there  many  of  the  members  of  the 
State  Convention  in  1788,  to  consider  the  Federal  Constitution,  found  a 
home  during  the^session.  The  city  is  partly  upon  a  hill-side,  sloping  to 
the  river,  but  chiefly  upon  an  elevated  plain,  back  of  which  is  College 
Hill,  whose  summit  is  five  hundi-ed  feet  above  the  town.  It  is  crowned 
with  an  edifice  modelled,  externally,  after  the  Temple  of  Minerva,  at 
Athens,  and  devoted  to  the  use  of  a  popular  institution  of  learning.  The 
views  from  this  summit  are  extensive,  and  very  interesting,  and  embrace 
a  region  about  twenty-five  hundred  square  miles  in  extent  of  the  most 
diversified  scenery.  The  city,  appearing  like  a  town  in  a  forest,  lies  at 
the  foot  of  the  spectator,  and  between  the  lofty  Katzbergs  on  the  north, 
and  the  Highlands  on  the  south,  the  Hudson  is  seen  at  intervals,  having 
the  appearance  of  a  chaia  of  little  lakes.  Around,  within  an  area  of 
twenty  to  thirty  nules  in  diameter,  spreads  out  a  farming  country,  like  a 
charming  picture,  beautiful  in  every  feature. 

The  general  appearance  of  Poughkeepsie  from  the  hills  above  Lewis- 
burg,  on  the  western  side  of  the  Hudson,  is  given  in  our  sketch.  It  is 
one  of  the  most  delightful  places  for  residence  in  the  United  States.  It 
is  centrally  situated  between  New  York  the  commercial,  and  Albany  the 
political,  capital  of  the  State.     Its  streets  are  shaded  with  maple,  elm, 


190 


THE   HUDSON. 


and  acacia  trees,  and  their  cleanliness  is  proverbial.  It  is  celebrated  for 
its  numerous  seminaries  of  learning  for  both  sexes,  the  salubrity  of  its 
climate,  the  fertility  of  the  surrounding  country,  and  the  -wealth  and 
general  independence  of  its  inhabitants.  The  eye  and  ear  are  rarely 
offended  by  public  exhibitions  of  squalor  or  vice,  while  evidences  of  thrift 
are  seen  on  every  hand. 

From  a  high  rocky  bluff  on  the  river  front  of  Poughkeepsie,  named  the 
Call  Eock,  exquisite  views  of  the  Hudson,  north  and  south,  may  be 
obtained.     The  scene  southward,  which  includes  a  distant  view  of  the 


TlIK   IIIGHLAKDS,  TROM  POruIIKEIiPSIK. 


Highlands,  is  the  most  attractive.  At  all  times  the  river  is  filled  with 
water-craft  of  almost  every  description.  The  most  striking  objects  on  its 
surface  are  fleets  of  barges  from  the  northern  and  western  canals,  loaded 
with  the  products  of  the  fields  and  forests,  lashed  or  tethered  together, 
and  towed  by  a  steamboat.  On  those  barges  whole  families  sometimes 
reside  during  the  season  of  navigation ;  and  upon  lines  stretched  over 
piles  of  lumber,  newly-washed  clothes  may  be  frequently  seen  fluttering 
in  the  breeze.     One  of  these  fleets  appears  in  our  sketch. 

Two  miles  below  Poughkeepsie  is  Locust  Grove,  the  seat  of  Professor 


THE    HUDSON. 


191 


Samuel  F.  B.  Morse,  an  eminent  artist  and  philosopher,  the  founder  of 
the  American  Academy  of  Design,  but  better  known  to  the  world  as  the 
author  of  the  system  of  telegraphing  by  electro-magnetism,  now  used  in 
almost  every  civilised  country  on  the  globe.  For  this  wonderful  contri- 
bution to  science  and  addition  to  the  world's  inventions  for  moral  and 
material  advancement,  he  has  been  honoured  by  several  royal  testimonials, 
honorary  and  substantial,  and  by  the  universal  gratitude  and  admiration 
of  his  countrymen.  Locust  Grove  is  his  summer  retreat,  and  from  his 
study  he  has  electrographic  communication  with  all  parts  of  the  United 


LOCLST   GROVE. 


States  and  the  British  provinces.  The  mansion  is  so  embowered  that  it 
is  almost  invisible  to  the  traveller  on  the  highway.  But  immediately 
around  it  are  gardens,  conservatories,  and  a  pleasant  lawn,  basking  in  the 
sunshine,  and  through  vistas  between  magnificent  trees,  glimpses  may  be 
caught  of  the  Hudson,  the  northern  and  southern  ranges  of  mountains, 
and  villages  that  dot  the  western  shore  of  the  river.  Here  the  master 
dispenses  a  generous  hospitality  to  friends  and  strangers,  and  with  the 
winning  graces  of  a  modest,  unobtrusive  nature,  he  delights  all  who  enter 
the  charmed  circle  of  Locust  Grove.     For  the  man  of  taste  and  genius  his 


192 


THE    HUDSON. 


home  is  one  of  the  most  charming  retreats  to  be  found  on  tlic  banks  of 
the  Hudson  from  the  mlderness  to  the  sea. 

About  four  miles  below  Poughkeepsie  is  an  ancient  stone  farm-house 
and  a  mill,  at  the  mouth  of  Spring  Brook,  at  the  eastern  terminus  of  the 
Milton  Ferry.  Here,  during  the  old  war  for  independence,  lived  Thcophilus 
Anthony,  ablaoksmith,  farmer,  miller,  and  staunch  "Whig,  who  used  Lis 
forge  for  most  rebellious  purposes.  He  assisted  in  making  a  great  chain 
(of  which  I  shall  hereafter  write),  that  was  stretched  across  the  Hudson 
in  the  Highlands  at  Fort  Montgomery,  to  prevent  the  British  ships  of  war 


HILTON   FEKKV  AKD  IIORSK-EOAT. 


ascending  the  river  and  carrying  invading  troops  into'  the  heart  of  the 
country.  For  this  offence,  when  the  chain  and  accompanying  boom  were 
forced,  and  the  vessels  of  Vaughan  carried  the  firebrand  to  Esopus  or 
Kingston,  the  rebel  blacksmith's  mill  was  laid  in  ashes,  and  he  was 
confined  in  the  loathsome  Jersey  prison-ship  at  New  York,  where  he  had 
ample  time  for  reflection  and  penitence  for  three  weary  years.  Alas  !  the 
latter  never  came.  He  was  a  sinner  against  ministers,  too  hardened  for 
repentance,  and  he  remained  a  rebel  until  the  close  of  his  life.  Another 
mill  soon  arose  from  the  ashes  of  the  old  one,  and  there  his  grandsons,  the 


THE    HUDSON. 


193 


Messrs.  Gill  were  grinding  -wheat  when  we  were  there  for  the  descendants 
of  both  "Whigs  and  Tories,  and  never  inquired  into  the  politics  of  the 
passengers  upon  their  boat  at  the  Milton  Ferry.  That  boat  was  keeping 
alive  the  memory  of  times  before  steam  was  used  for  na^-igation.  It  was 
one  of  only  two  vessels  of  the  kind  upon  the  Hudson  in  1860,  tliat  were 
propelled  by  horse-power.  The  other  was  at  Coxsakie.  The  Milton 
fevry-boat  has  since  been  withdrawn. 

Opposite  Spring  Brook  is  the  village  of  Milton,  remarkable,  like  its 


NEW   HAilBURG  TUNNEL. 


sister,  Marlborough,  a  few  miles  below,  for  the  picturesque  beauty  of  the 
surrounding  country  and  the  abundance  of  Antwerp  raspberries  produced 
in  its  vicinity  every  year.  There  and  at  some  places  on  the  eastern  shore, 
are  the  chief  sources  of  the  supply  of  that  delicious  fruit  for  the  city  of 
New  York  ;  and  the  quantity  raised  is  so  great,  that  a  small  steamboat  is 
employed  for  the  sole  purpose  of  carrying  raspberries  daily  to  the  city. 
These  villages  are  upon  high  banks,  and  are  scarcely  visible  from  the 
river.     They   have   a   background  of  rich   farming   lands,    terminating 

c  c 


194 


THE   HUDSON. 


beyond  a  sweet  valley  by  a  range  of  lofty  bills  tbat  arc  covered  -with  the 
primeval  forest.  They  arc  the  resort  of  New  Yorkers  during  the  heat  of 
summer. 

Eight  miles  below  Poughkeepsie  is  the  little  village  of  Ifew  Hamburg, 
situated  at  the  foot  of  a  rocky  promontory  thickly  covered  with  the  Arbor 
Vitaj,  or  white  cedar,  and  near  the  mouth  of  the  Wappingi's  Creek. 
Through  this  bluff  the  Hudson  Eiver  Railway  passes  in  a  tunnel  800  feet 
in  length,  and  then  crosses  the  nioutli  of  the  Wappingi,  upon  a  causeway 


THE  ABBOfl  VIT.& 


and  drawbridge.  All  over  this  rocky  bluff,  including  the  roof  of  the 
tunnel,  the  Arbor  Vita;  shnibs  stand  thickly;  and  present,  according  to 
Loudon,  the  eminent  English  writer  on  horticulture  and  kindred  subjects, 
some  of  the  finest  .specimens  of  that  tree  to  be  found  in  the  world.  Hero 
they  may  be  seen  of  all  sizes  and  most  perfect  forms,  from  the  tiny  shrub 
to  the  tall  tree  that  shows  its  stem  for  several  feet  from  the  ground.  The 
most  beautiful  are  those  of  six  to  ten  feet  in  height,  whose  branches  shoot 
out  close  to  the  ground,  forming  perfect  cones,  and  exhibiting  nothing  to 
the  eye  but  delicate  sprays  and  bright  green  leaves.  "When  quite  small 
these  shrubs  may  be  successfully  transplanted ;  but  under  cultivation  they 


THE    HUDSON. 


195 


sometimes  lose  their  pcri'ect  form,  and  become  irregular,  like  the  common 
collar  tree.  Thoy  are  beginniag  to  be  extensively  used  for  hedges,  and 
the  ornamentation  of  pleasure  grounds.* 

A  pleasant  glimpse  of  Marlborough,  through  a  broad  ravine,  may  be 
obtained  from  the  rough  eminence  above  the  New  Hamburg  tunnel,  and 
also  from  the  lime-kilns  at  the  foot  of  the  bluff,  on  the  edge  of  the  river, 
where  a  ferry  connects  the  two  villages.  But  one  of  the  most  interesting 
views  on  the  Hudson,  in  this  vicinity,  is  from  the  gravelly  promontory 


MAHLUUlfOUtiH,  FROM  THE  LI>LE-KILXS. 


near  the  town,  at  the  mouth  of  the  "Wappingi's  Creek — a  large  stream  that 
comes  down  from  the  hills  in  the  north-eastern  part  of  Duchess  County, 
dispensing  fertility  and  extensive  water-power  along  its  whole  course.  It 
is  navigable  for  a  mile  and  a  half  from  its  mouth,  when  it  falls  seventy- 
five  feet,  and  furnishes  power  used  by  quite  a  large  manufacturing  village. 
It  is  usually  incorrectly  spelled  Wappingers.     Its  name  is  derived  from 


*  The  Arbor  Vitre  is  tlie  Ihttya  Occidentalis  of  Liuiia?u3.  It  is  not  tlie  genuine  white  cedar,  although 
it  frequently  bears  that  name.  In  New  England  it  is  often  called  Hackmatack.  Its  leaves  lie  in  tlattened 
mouses  along  the  stems,  and  each  is  filled  with  a  vesicle  containing  a  thin  aromatic  turpentine.  It  bears 
j-ellowish  brown  cones,  about  five  lines  in  length. 


ree 


THE   HUDSON. 


the  "Wappingi  tribe  of  Indians,  who,  with  the  Mattt:awans,  inhabited  this 
beautiful  region  on  the  Hudson,  just  north  of  the  Highlands.  It  should 
be  written  "Wappingi's  Creek. 

From  that  gravelly  height  the  Highlands,  tlie  village  of  Newburgli,  and 
a  large  portion  of  the  lower  part  of  the  "  Long  Eeach"  from  Newburgh 
to  Crom  Elbow,  are  seen ;  with  the  flat  rock  in  the  river,  at  the  head  of 
Newburgh  Bay  and  near  its  western  shore,  known  as  Den,  BuyveVs  Bans 
Kamer,  or  the  Devil's  Dance  Chamber.  This  rock  has  a  level  surface  of 
about  half  an  acre  (now  covered  with  beautiful  Arbor  Vitre  shrubs),  and  is 


MOUTH   01    l\\im&Ib  tIEEk 


separated  from  the  main-land  by  a  marsh.  On  this  rock  the  Indians 
performed  their  peculiar  semi-religious  rites,  called  jioic-tcoics,  before  going 
upon  hunting  and  fishing  expeditions,  or  the  war-^jath.  They  painted 
themselves  grotesquely,  built  a  large  fire  upon  this  rock,  and  danced 
around  it  with  songs  and  yells,  making  strange  contortions  of  face  and 
limbs,  under  the  direction  of  their  conjurors  or  "medicine  men."  They 
would  tumble,  leap,  run,  and  yell,  when,  as  they  said,  the  Devil,  or  Evil 
Spirit,  would  appear  in  the  shape  of  a  beast  of  prey,  or  a  harmless  animal; 
the  former  apparition  betokened  evil  to  their  proposed  undertaking,  and 


THE   HUDSON.  .197 


the  latter  prophesied  of  good.  For  at  least  a  century  after  the  Europeans 
discovered  the  river,  these  hideous  rites  were  performed  upon  this  spot, 
and  the  Dutch  skippers  who  navigated  the  Hudson,  called  the  rock  Den 
Duyvel's  Dans  Kamer.  Here  it  was  that  Peter  Stuyvesant's  crew  were 
"most  horribly  frightened  by  roystering  devils,"  according  to  the  veracious 
Knickerbocker. 

Sixteen  miles  below  Poughkecpsie,  on  the  same  side  of  the  Hudson,  is 
the  small  village  of  Fishkill  Landing,  having  for  a  backgi-ound,  in  a  view 
of  it  from  the  river,  the  lofty  range  of  the  Fishkill  Mountains,  which  form 
a  portion  of  the  Highlands  proper,  through  which  the  Hudson  flows  a  few 
miles  helow.  Here  is  the  Fishkill  and  Newburgh  railway-station,  and  a 
long  wharf  that  stretches  over  the  shallow  bed  of  the  river  to  the  deep 
channel  far  in  the  direction  of  Newburgh.  That  large  to^vn  lies  upon  the 
steep  slope  on  the  western  shore,  and  presents  a  beautiful  appearance  to 
the  traveller  by  railway  or  steamboat,  especially  when  it  is  lighted  up  by 
the  morning  sun.  Around  that  old  town,  the  site  of  the  oldest  permanent 
settlement  in  Orange  County,  are  clustered  many  associations  of  the  war 
for  independence  ;  for  near  there  the  Continental  Army  was  encamped  ; 
there  it  was  disbanded ;  and  in  a  house  yet  standing,  and  well  preserved, 
Washington  had  his  hcad-r|uarters  for  a  long  time,  as  we  shall  observe 
presently. 

The  first  European  settlement  at  i^ewburgh  was  commenced  in  1709, 
by  some  Palatines,  who  went  up  from  New  York  for  the  purpose,  seated 
themselves  a  little  above  Quassaic  (sometimes  called  Chambers')  Creek, 
where  the  Quassaic  Indians  resided,  and  laid  the  foundations  of  ' '  New- 
borougli."  They  obtained  a  patent  from  Queen  Anne  in  1719,  but 
becoming  dissatisfied,  they  went  some  to  Pennsylvania,  and  some  to  the 
Mohawk'  Valley.  English,  Irish,  l>ew  England,  and  Huguenot  settlors 
supplied  their  places.  New  "Windsor  (two  miles  below),  and  other  places, 
were  settled,  and  a  flourishing  little  commonwealth  was  commenced. 
New  Windsor,  upon  the  shores  of  a  sheltered  bay  near  the  mouth  of  the 
Quassaic,  was,  for  some  time,  the  rival  of  Newburgh.  They  were 
included  in  the  "Highland  Precinct"  until  1763,  when  they  were 
divided  into  separate  municipalities,  and  so  remained  until  organised  into 
towns  in  1788. 


CHAPTER    XI. 


g0r^  HE  house  at  Newburgh,  which  was  occupied  by 
.  \'C  "Washington,  was  built  by  Jonathan  Hasbrouck, 
in  1750,  and  is  known  by  the  respective  names  of 
"Hasbrouck  House"  and  "Washington  Head- 
quarters." It  has  been  the  property  of  the  State  for 
several  years,  and  a  sufficient  annual  appropriation 
from  the  State  treasury  is  made,  to  keep  it,  with  the 
grounds  around,  in  good  order.  AVithin  it  are 
collected  many  relics  of  the  revolution,  the  war  of  1812-15,  and  the  war 
with  Mexico. 

In  connection  witli  this  house,  as  the  head-quarters  of  the  army, 
occurred  one  of  the  most  interesting  events  in  the  life  of  Washington,  to 
which  allusion  has  already  been  made.  It  was  in  the  spring  of  1783. 
Peace  had  been  declared,  a  preliniiuary  treaty  had  been  signed  by  Great 
Britain  and  the  United  States,  and  the  Continental  Army  was  soon  to  be 
disbanded.  The  civil  confederacy  was  weak.  For  a  long  time  the 
Congress  had  been  unable  to  pay  the  army,  and  officers  and  soldiers  were 
likely  to  be  sent  home  penniless,  large  pecuniary  creditors  of  the  country 
whose  independence  they  had  achieved.  Secret  consultations  were  held 
among  a  few  of  the  officers.  They  had  lost  faith  in  the  Congress,  and 
began  to  doubt  the  feasibility  of  republican  government,  and  some  of 
them  indirectly  offered  the  power  and  title  of  King  to  Washington.  He 
spurned  the  proposition  with  indignation.  Then  an  appeal  to  the  officers 
of  the  army  was  written,  and  secretly  disseminated,  in  which  grievances 
were  set  forth,  and  they  were  advised  to  take  matters  into  their  own 
hands,  and,  in  effect,  form  a  military  despotism  if  the  Congress  should 
not  speedily  provide  for  their  pay.  Washington  was  informed  of  the 
movement.  He  resolved  to  control,  without  seeming  to  oppose  it.  He 
called  a  meeting  of  the  officers,  and  the  suspected  ringleader  of  the  move- 
ment was   asked  to   preside.      When  all  were  assembled,  Washington 


THE   HUDSON. 


199 


stepped  forward  and  read  to  them  a  powerful  appeal  to  their  patriotism. 
His  iirst  words,  before  unfolding  the  paper,  touched  every  heart.  "  You 
see,  gentlemen,"  he  said,  as  he  placed  his  spectacles  before  his  eyes, 
"that  I  have  grown  not  only  greij,  but  llincl,  in  your  service."  His 
address,  as  usual,  was  short,  pointed,  convincing,  and  most  persuasive. 
All  eyes  were  filled  with  tears.  The  spirit  of  mutiny  and  revolt  shrank 
abashed,  and  the  assembly  resolved  unanimously,  "That  the  officers  of 
the  American  army  view  with  abhoiTence,  and  reject  with  disdain,  the 
infamous  propositions  contained  in  a  late  anonymous  address  to  the  ofiicers 


WASHINGTON'S  HEAD-QUARTERS  AT  NE^^'HUBGH. 


of  the  army."  This  scene  did  not  occur  at  head-quarters,  but  in  a  large 
temporary  Ijuilding  a  few  miles  in  the  interior,  near  where  the  army  lay 
at  that  time. 

In  the  centre  of  the  Hasbrouck  House,  or  Head- quarters,  is  a  large 
hall,  having  on  one  side  au  enormous  fire-place,  and  containing  seven 
doors,  but  only  one  window.  Here  Washington  received  his  friends ;  here 
large  companies  dined ;  and  here,  from  time  to  time,  some  of  the  most 
distinguished  characters  of  the  revolution,  ci^-il  and  military,  were 
assembled.     Colonel  Nicholas  Fish,  of  the  Continental  Army,  used  to 


200 


THE   HUDSON. 


relate  an  interesting  fact  connected  with  this  room.  He  was  in  Paris  a 
sliort  time  before  the  death  of  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  who  had  lodged 
many  nights  beneath  the  roof  of  the  "  Hasbrouck  House."  Colonel  Fish 
was  invited,  with  the  American  minister,  on  one  occasion,  to  sup  at  the 
house  of  the  distinguished  Marbois,  who  was  the  French  Secretary  of 
Legation  in  the  United  States  during  the  revolution.  Lafayette  was  one 
of  tlic  guests.  At  the  supper  hour  the  company  was  shown  into  a  room 
which  contrasted  quite  oddly  with  the  Parisian  elegance  of  the  other 
apaitments,  where  they  had  spent  the  evening.     A  low,  boarded,  painted 


INTEKIOR  OF   ^VASHINGTON'S   HEAD-QUARTERS. 


ceiling,  with  large  beam?,  a  single  small,  uncurtained  window,  witli 
numerous  small  doors,  as  well  as  the  general  style  of  the  whole,  gave,  at 
first,  the  idea  of  the  kitchen,  or  largest  room,  of  a  Dutch  or  Belgian  farm- 
house. On  a  long  rough  table  was  a  repast,  just  as  little  in  keeping  with 
the  refined  cuisines  of  Paris,  as  the  room  was  with  its  architecture.  It 
consisted  of  a  large  dish  of  meat,  uncouth-looking  pastry,  and  wiue  in 
decanters  and  bottles,  accompanied  by  glasses  and  silver  mugs,  such  as 
indicated  other  habits  and  tastes  than  those  of  modern  Paris.  "  Do  you 
know  where  we  now  are  ?  "  said  Marbois  to  Lafayette  and  his  American 


THE    HUDSON. 


201 


companions.  They  paused  in  surpiise  for  a  few  minutes.  They  had  seen 
something  like  it  before,  but  when  ?  and  where  ?  "  Ah  !  the  seven  doors 
and  one  window,"  exclaimed  Lafayette,  "and  the  silver  camp-goblets, 
such  as  the  Marshals  of  France  used  in  my  youth  !  Wo  are  at  "Washington's 
Head-quarters,  on  the  Hudson,  fifty  years  ago  !  " 

Upon  the  lawn,  a  little  eastward  of  the  Head- quarters,  is  a  tall  flag- 
staff, and  near  it  a  chaste  monument,  in  the  form  of  a  mausoleum,  made 
of  brown  sandstone,  and  erected  early  in  the  summer  of  1860,  over  the 
grave  of  the  latest  survivor  of  Washington's  life-guard.     The  monument 


Llli.  OL     I  r     MOM  MLNl 


was  dedicated  on  the  18th  of  June,  with  appropriate  services  in  connection 
with  a  large  civic  and  military  parade.  It  is  about  six  feet  in  height, 
and  is  surmounted  by  a  large  recumbent  wreath.  On  the  river-front  are 
the  words  : — "  The  last  of  the  Life  Guards.  Uzal  E;N.irp,  boen,  1759; 
DIED,  1856.  JIoNJiouTH,  Valley  Forge,  Yorktown."  On  the  opposite 
side: — "Erected  by  the  Newbtjegh Gttauds,  Company  F.,  19th  Regiment, 
IT.  T.  S.  M.,  JiTv'E,  1 860."  It  is  surrounded  by  a  chain  supported  by  granite 
posts,  and  is  flanked  by  two  pieces  of  heavy  cannon.  The  monument  was 
designed  by  H.  K.  Brown,  the  sculptor. 

V    D 


20S 


THE   HUDSON. 


Mr.  Knapp,  tlic  recipient  of  tliesc  honours,  was,  for  a  long  time,  the 
only  'surviving  [member  of  the  body-guard  of  "Washington,  which  was 
organised  at  Boston  in  the  spring  of  1770,  and  continued  throughout  the 
war.  They  were  selected  from  all  the  regiments  of  the  Continental  Array, 
and  chosen  for  their  peculiar  fitness  of  person  and  moral  character.  Mr. 
Knapp  was  a  sergeant  of  the  Guard,  and  was  presented  by  "Washington 
with  a  badge  of  Military  Merit — the  American  Legion  of  Honour.  In  the 
autumn  of  1 855,  the  writer  was  at  a  public  dinner  where  the  old  guardsman 
was  a  guest.     He  was  then  almost  ninety-six  years  of  age.    AVhen  he  was 


Mi^^BlHOH   BA\ 


about  to  leave  the  table,  the  company  arose.  The  veteran  addressed  a  fcAv 
words  to  them,  and  concluded  by  inviting  them  all  to  his  funeral !  Just 
four  months  afterwards  he  died,  and  many  who  were  at  the  feast  were  at 
the  burial.  By  permission  of  his  family,  the  citizens  of  Newburgh,  after 
his  body  had  lain  in  state  for  three  days,  buried  him  at  the  foot  of  the 
flag-staff,  near  the  old  head-quarters  of  his  chief,  where  he  had  watched 
and  sported  three-quarters  of  a  century  before.  It  was  over  tliat  grave 
the  monument  wc  have  delineated  was  recently  erected. 

The   natural   scenery  around   Newburgh  has   an   aspect   of  mingled 


THE   HUDSON, 


203 


grandeur  and  beauty,  peculiar  and  unrivalled.  Before  the  town  is  the 
lofty  range  of  tlie  Fishkill  Mountains,  on  whicli  signal  fires  were  lighted 
during  the  revolution  ;  and  the  group  of  the  Highlands,  through  which 
the  Hudson  flows.  These  are  reflected  in  a  broad  and  beautiful  bay,  at 
all  times  animated  with  a  variety  of  water-craft  and  wild-fowl.  Even  in 
winter,  when  the  frost  has  bridged  the  entire  river,  Newburgh  Bay 
presents  a  lively  scene  almost  every  day,  for  ice-boats  and  skaters  are 
there  in  great  abundance.  Its  broad  sm-face  is  broken  by  only  a  solitary 
rock  island.    One  of  the  finest  and  most  comprehensive  views  of  Newburgh 


FISHKILL  LASCIKli  AMJ   >'EWBURGII, 


Bay  may  be  obtained  from  the  hill,  just  below  the  Fishkill  and  Newburgh 
railway-station,  looking  south-west.  This  view  is  given  in  our  sketch. 
It  includes  the  lower  part  of  I^ewburgli,  the  mouth  of  the  Quassaic  Creek, 
the  villages  of  New  Windsor,  and  Cornwall,  the  beautiful  low  peninsula 
called  Denning's  Point  on  the  left,  and  the  higher  one  of  Plum  Point,  on 
the  western  shore,  seen  in  the  centre.  Just  beyond  the  latter  is  the 
mouth  of  the  Moodna,  a  fine  clear  stream  that  comes  down  from  the  hill- 
country  of  Orange  County.     The  view  is  bounded  on  the  left  by  the  lofty 


204 


THE   HUDSON. 


hills  extending  westward  from  the  Storm  King,  at  whoso  base  the  Hudson 
enters  the  Highlands. 

At  Newburgh  is  the  eastern  terminus  of  a  branch  of  the  New  York  and 
Erie  Railway,  which  passes  through  some  of  the  most  picturesque  scenery 
in  the  world,  between  the  Hudson  and  Delawai'e  rivers.  In  the  vicinity 
of  the  village  are  charming  drives,  but  no  one  is  more  attractive  towards 
evening,    than   that   along  the   river-bank,    through   New   "Windsor   to 


IDLEWILD   I'ROM  THE  BHOOK. 


Idlewild,  the  residence  of  the  well-known  author,  N.  P.  Willis,  Esq.  I 
travelled  that  road  on  a  hot  afternoon  in  August.  The  shadows  were 
short ;  a  soft  breeze  came  up  the  river  from  the  open  northern  door  of  the 
Highlands,  whose  rugged  forms  were  bathed  in  golden  light.  On  the 
land  not  a  leaf  was  stirred  by  a  zephyr.  I  crossed  the  Moodna,  in 
whose  shallow  waters  the  cattle  were  seeking  cool  retreats,  and  I  was 
glad  to  take  shelter  from  the  hot  sun  in  the  shadows  of  the  old  trees  on 


THE   HUDSON. 


205 


the  margin  of  the  brook  that  rushes  from  the  Glen  at  Idlewild.  There  all 
was  cool,  quiet,  and  delightful.  The  merry  laugh  of  childrea  came 
ringing  like  the  tones  of  silver  bells  through  the  open  grove.     I  sat  down 


IH  THE   OLEN  AT  IDLEWILD. 


upon  the  bank  of  the  brook,  to  enjoy  the  sweet  repose  of  the  scene,  when, 
looking  up,  the  cottage  of  Idlewild,  half  concealed  by  evergreens,  stood  in 
full  view  on  the  brow  of  the  glen,  two  hundred  feet  above  me.    The  whole 


206  THE   HUDSON. 


acclivity  is  covered  with,  the  primeval  wood,  which  presents  an  apparently 
impenetrable  barrier  to  approach  from  below. 

After  sketching  the  attractive  scene,  I  went  leisurely  up  the  deep,  cool, 
dark  glen,  to  its  narrowest  point,  where  the  brook  occupies  the  whole 
bottom  of  the  gorge,  and  flows  in  picturesque  rapids  and  cascades  over 
and_  among  rugged  rocks  and  overhanging  trees  and  shrubbery,  with  a 
rustic  foot-bridge,  the  solitary  testimony  that  man  had  ever  penetrated 
that  wild  retreat. 

A  winding  pathway  lead  from  the  slender  bridge  in  the  glen  up  to  the 
cottage  of  Idlewild,  which  is  at  the  north-eastern  angle  of  the  Highland 
Terrace,  on  which  the  village  of  Cornwall  stands.  The  views  from  it  are 
exceedingly  beautiful.  From  the  southern  porch  a  lawn  rises  gently, 
beyond  which  nothing  can  be  seen  but  the  purple  sides  and  summit  of  the 
Stoi-m  King,  rising  nearly  1,600  feet  above  the  river.  A  little  way  from 
the  cottage,  a  full  view  of  Newburgh  Bay  and  the  river  and  country 
above  may  be  obtained ;  and  on  the  left,  the  placid  estuary  into  which  the 
Moodna*  flows,  reflects  all  the  glories  of  sunset. 

The  Highland  Terrace  owes  its  name  and  fame  to  Mr.  Willis,  whose  pen 
has  been  as  potent  as  the  wand  of  a  magician  in  pooplLug  that  delightful 
spot  with  summer  residents  from  New  York.  He  has  thoroughly 
"  written  it  up."  It  is  a  fertile  strip  of  land,  quite  elevated,  lying  at  the 
foot  of  the  north-western  slopes  of  the  mountains.  The  grape  is  culti- 
vated there  with  success ;  and  as  its  banks  yield  some  of  the  finest  brick- 
clay  in  the  country,  it  has  become  a  celebrated  brick-making  place. 
Cornwall  Landing  is  at  the  base  of  the  Terrace  near  the  foot  of  the  Storm 
King,  and  is  reached  from  the  plateau  by  a  steep,  winding  road.  During 
the  summer  months  it  exhibits  gay  scenes  at  the  hour's  when  the  steam- 
boats arrive.  Many  of  the  temporary  residents  of  that  vicinity  have  their 
own  carriages,  and  these,  fiUed  with  pleasure-seeking  people,  expecting 


*  Tliis  was  called  Murderer's  Creek,  because,  in  early  timcs^  a  family  of  whiPe  iffoi^e,  who  lived 
upon  its  banks,  was  mm-dered  by  the  Indians.  Mi-.  Willis,  with  a  laudable  desire  to  get  rid  of  a  name 
so  unpleasant,  sought  reasons  for  establishing  the  belief  that  it  is  a  corruption  of  the  sweet  Indian  word 
Mwdna.  He  has  been  successful,  and  the  stream  is  now  generally  called  Mooilna's  Creek.  Such  is 
idso  the  name  of  the  post-office  there,  established  by  the  goverament.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  old 
name  will  be  speedily  forgotten. 


THE    HUDSON. 


207 


to  meet  friends,  or  only  hoping  to  see  new  faces,  quite  cover  the  wharf  at 
times,  especially  at  evening. 

From  the  Cornwall  Landing  an  interesting  view  of  the  upper  entrance 
to  the  Highlands,  between  the  Storm  King  and  Breakneck  Hill,  may  be 
obtained.  In  our  sketch,  the  former  is  seen  on  the  right,  the  latter  on 
the  left.  The  river  is  here  deep  and  narrow.  The  rocky  shores,  composed 
principally  of  granite  and  gneiss,  embedding  loose  nodules  and  fixed  veins 


UPPER   ENTRANCE  TO  THE   nlGITLANr?. 


of  magnetic  iron  ore,  rise  from  1,000  to  almost  1,600  feet  above  the  river, 
and  are  scantily  clothed  with  stunted  trees.  The  range  extends  in  a 
north-eastern  and  south-western  direction  across  the  Hudson,  in  the 
counties  of  Duchess  and  Putnam,  Orange  and  Eockland,  and  connects 
with  the  Alleghanics.  Geologists  say  that  it  is  unequivocally  a  primitive 
chain,  and  in  the  early  ages  of  the  world  must  have  opposed  a  barrier  to 
the  passage  of  the  waters,  and  caused  a  vast  lake  which  covered  the 


208  THE    HUDSON. 


present  Valley  of  the  Hudson,  estondinfj  to,  if  not  over,  Lake  Champlain, 
eastward  to  the  Taglikaniok  Mountain,  in  Columbia  County,  and  the 
Highlands  along  the  ■vrestern  borders  of  Massachusetts,  and  westward  to 
the  Kayaderosseras  Mountain,  near  Lake  George,  alluded  to  in  our 
description  of  the  Upper  Hudson.  Such,  they  say,  must  have  been  in 
former  ages  the  "Ancient  Lake  of  the  Upper  Valley  of  the  Hudson," 
indicated  by  the  levels  and  surveys  of  the  present  day,  and  by  an 
examination  of  the  geological  structure  and  alluvial  formations  of  this 
valley.  The  Indians  called  the  range  eastward  of  the  Hudson,  including 
the  Fishkill  Mountains,  Matteaivan,  or  the  Country  of  Good  Fur.  They 
gave  the  same  name  to  the  stream  that  flows  into  the  Hudson,  on  the 
south  side  of  Denning's  Point,  which  the  Dutch  called  Vis  Kill,  or  Fish 
Creek,  and  now  known  as  the  Fish  Kill. 

Toward  the  evening  of  the  same  hot  day  in  August  (1860),  when  I 
rode  from  Newburgh  to  Idlewild  and  the  Highland  Terrace,  I  went  in  a 
skiff  around  to  the  shaded  nooks  of  the  western  shore  below  the  Storm 
King,  and  viewed  the  mountains  in  all  their  grandeur  from  their  bases. 
The  Storm  King,  seen  from  the  middle  of  the  river  abreast  its  eastern 
centre,  is  almost  semicircular  in  form,  and  gave  to  the  minds  of  tlic 
utilitarian  Dutch  skippers  who  navigated  the  Hudson  early,  the  idea  of  a 
Inige  lump  of  butter,  and  they  named  it  Bofer  Berg,  or  Eutter  Hill.  It 
Iiad  borne  that  name  until  recently,  when  Mr.  Willis  successfully  appealed 
to  the  good  taste  of  the  public  by  giving  it  the  more  appropriate  and 
poetic  title  of  Storm  King.  The  appeal  was  met  with  a  sensible  response, 
and  the  directors  of  the  Hudson  River  Railway  Company  recognised  its 
fitness  by  naming  a  station  at  Breakneck  Hill  (when  will  a  better  name 
for  this  be  given?),  opposite  the  Boter  Berg,  "Storm  King  Station."  The 
features  of  the  mountain  have  been  somewhat  changed.  For  many  years 
past  vast  masses  of  stone  have  been  quarried  from  its  south-eastern  face  ; 
until  now  the  scene  from  its  foot  has  the  appearance  given  in  the  sketch. 

Serrated  Breakneck  opposite  has  also  been  much  quarried,  and  through 
its  narrow  base,  upon  the  brink  of  the  river,  a  tunnel  for  the  railway  has 
been  pierced.  Several  years  ago  a  powder  blast,  made  by  the  quarriers 
high  up  on  the  southern  declivity  of  the  mountain,  destroyed  an  object 
interesting  to  voyagers  upon  the  river.     From  abreast  the  Storm  King  a 


THE  HUDSON. 


209 


Luge  mass  of  rock  ■n-as  seen  projected  against  the  eastern  sky  in  the 
perfect  form  of  a  human  face,  the  branches  of  a  tree  forming  an  excellent 
representation  of  thick  curly  beard  upon  the  chin.     It  was  called  the 


AT  THE   FOOT  OF  THE  STOEM  KING. 


Turk's  Head.  By  many  it  was  mistaken  for  "Anthony's  Is'ose,"  the 
huge  promontory  so  called  at  the  southern  entrance  to  the  Higlilands  a 
few  miles  below.     Its  demolition  caused  many  expressions  of  regret,  for 


210 


THE    HUDSON. 


it  was  regarded  as  a  groat  curiosity,  and  an  interesting  feature  in  the 
Highland  scenery  on  the  river. 

Just  below  the  Storm  King,  at  the  foot  of  a  magnificent  valley  composed 
of  wooded  slopes  that  come  down  from  the  high  hills  two  or  three  miles 
westward,  is  the  cottage  of  Mr.  Lambertson,  a  resident  of  New  York, 
who  has  chosen  that  isolated  spot  for  a  summer  retreat.  He  has  only  one 
neighbour,  who  lives  in  another  cottage  beneath  willow  trees  at  the  base 
of  the  Cro'  Nest.  This  group  of  hills  forms  the  southern  boundary  of 
their  wild  domain,  and  the  Storm  King  the  northern.     In  the  slopes  of 


THE  "rOWELL"  OFF  THE  STORM   KIKQ  VALLEV. 


the  grand  valley  between  these  hills  wild  ravines  arc  furrowed,  and  form 
channels  for  clear  mountain  streams,  and  every  rood  of  that  wilderness  of 
several  hundred  acres  is  covered  with  timber.  When  in  full  foliage  in 
summer  it  has  the  appearance,  in  every  light,  of  green  velvet.  I  have 
seen  it  in  the  morning  and  at  evening,  at  meridian  and  in  the  light  of 
the  full  moon,  and  on  all  occasions  it  had  the  same  soft  aspect  in  contrast 
with  the  rugged  forms  of  Cro'  Nest  and  the  Storm  King.  That  valley  is 
always  a  delightful  object  to  the  eye,  and  should  be  sought  for  by  the 
tourist.     The  last  time  I  passed  it  was  at  sunset.     I  was  on  the  swift 


THE   HUDSON. 


211 


steamer  Thomas  Poioell,  and  at  that  hour  the  deep  green  of  the  foreground 
was  fading  higher  up  into  a  mingled  colour  of  olive  and  pink,  and 
softening  into  delicate  purple,  while  the  rocky  summit  of  the  Storm  King 
cast  over  the  whole  the  reflected  effulgence  of  a  hrilliant  e\'enmg  sunlight. 
In  this  isolated  spot  among  the  mountains,  Joseph  Eodman  Drake,  whilst 
rambling  alone  many  years  ago,  wrote  con  amore  his  beautiful  poem, 


faCKNJi   Off  1H£  SIOllM   KING  VALLEi. 

"  The    Culprit  Fay,"  in   which   he   thus   summoned   the   fairies   to   a 
dance : — 

"  Ouplie  and  goblin!  imp  and  sprite ! 

Elf  of  eve  and  starry  fay ! 
Ve  that  love  the  moou's  soft  light, 

Hither,  hither,  wend  your  way. 
Twine  5'e  in  a  jocund  ring  ; 

Sing  and  trip  it  merrily ; 
Hand  to  hand,  and  wing  to  wmg, 

Eoimd  the  wUil  witch-hazel  tree." 


"Whilst   at   the  landing-place  at  Mr.  Lamhertson's,  one  of  those   black 


212 


THE    HUDSON. 


electrical  clouds,  -wliich  frequently  gatber  suddenly  among  the  Highlands 
during  the  heats  of  July  and  August,  came  up  from  the  west,  obscured  the 
sun,  hoYcrcd  upon  the  summit  of  the  Storm  King  a  few  minutes,  and  then 
passed  eastward,  giving  out  only  a  few  drops  of  rain  where  I  stood,  but 
casting  down  torrents  in  Newburgh  Bay,  accompanied  by  shafts  of  forked 
lightning  and  hea\-y  peals  of  thunder.  There  was  a  perfect  calm  while 
the  darkness  brooded.  Not  a  vessel  was  in  sight,  and  no  living  thing 
was  visible,  except  the  white  sea-gulls,  which  seem  to  be  always  on  the 


:1IGHLAKD  ENTRANCE  TO  KEWBUKGH  BAl . 


wing  in  the  van  or  in  the  wake  of  a  tempest.     The  shower  passed  east- 
ward over  the  Mattcawan  Hills,  when  suddenly  there  appeared 


"  That  beautiful  one, 
Wliose  arch  is  refraction,  whose  keystone  the  sun. 
In  the  hues  of  its  grandeur,  sublimely  it  stood 
O'er  the  river,  the  village,  the  field,  and  the  wood," 


and  cast  a  beautiful  radiance  over  the  great  hills   of  the   Shattemue,* 


*  The  Wappengi  and  Matteawan  tribes  called  the  Hudson  Shattemue,  and  the  Highlaiids  below  the 
Matteawan,  or  Fislikill  Moinitains,  the  Hills  of  the  Shattemue. 


THE    HUDSON.  213 


among  which  I  stood,  gazing  upon  a  sublime  scene  with  wonder  and 
delight. 

After  the  shower  had  passed  by,  I  rowed  to  the  middle  of  the  river,  in 
the  direction  of  Cold  Spring  Tillage,  on  the  eastern  shore,  and  obtained  a 
fine  view  of  the  Highland  entrance  to  Newburgh  Eay.  The  evening  sun 
was  pouring  a  flood  of  light  upon  the  scene.  On  the  left,  in  shadow, 
stood  the  Storm  King,  on  the  right  was  rugged  Breakneck,  with  its 
neighbour,  round  Little  Beacon  Hill,  and  between  was  PoUopell's  Island, 
a  solitary  rocky  eminence,  rising  from  the  river,  a  mile  north  of  them. 
Beyond  these  were  seen  the  expanse  of  Newburgh  Bay,  the  village,  the 
cultivated  country  beyond,  and  the  dim  pale  blue  peaks  of  the  Katzbergs, 
almost  sixty  miles  distant.  This  view  is  always  admired  by  travellers  as 
one  of  the  most  agreeable  in  the  whole  village  from  New  York  to  Albany. 

On  a  cool,  bright  morning  in  August,  I  climbed  to  the  bald  summit  of 
the  Storm  Eing,  accompanied  by  a  few  friends.  "W^e  procured  a  competent 
guide  at  Cornwall  landing,  and  ascended  the  nearest  and  steepest  part, 
where  a  path  was  to  be  found.  It  was  a  rough  and  difficult  one,  made 
originally  by  those  who  gathered  hoop-poles  upon  the  mountains.  It 
was  gullied  in  some  places,  and  filled  with  stones  in  others,  because  it 
serves  for  the  bed  of  a  mountain  torrent  during  showers  and  storms. 
Nearly  half-way  up  to  the  first  summit  we  found  a  spring  of  delicious 
water,  where  we  rested.  Occasionally  we  obtained  glimpses  of  the 
country  westward,  where  the  horizon  was  bounded  by  the  level  summits 
of  the  Shawangunk  Mountains. 

"We  reached  the  first  summit,  after  a  fatiguing  ascent  of  a  mile  and  a 
half.  It  was  not  the  highest,  yet  we  had  a  very  extensive  prospect  of 
the  country  around,  except  on  the  east,  which  was  hidden  by  the  higher 
points  of  the  mountain.  At  last  the  greatest  altitude  was  reached,  after 
making  our  way  another  mile  over  rocky  ledges,  and  through  gorges  filled 
with  shrub-oaks,  and  other  bushes.  There  a  glorious  picture  filled  us 
with  exquisite  pleasure.  "We  felt  amply  rewarded  for  all  our  toil.  The 
sky  was  cloudless,  and  the  atmosphere  perfectly  clear.  The  scenery,  in 
some  features,  was  similar  to,  but  in  all  others  totally  unlike,  that  of  the 
Adirondack  region.  Looking  northward,  the  river  was  seen  in  its 
slightly  winding  course  to  Crom  Elbow,  twenty-six  miles  distant,  with 


214 


THE   HUDSON. 


the  intermediate  villages  along  its  banks.  On  eacli  side  of  the  river,  and 
sloping  back  to  high  ranges  of  hills  (the  shores  of  the  ancient  lake  already 
alluded  to),  ■was  spread  out  one  of  the  most  fertile  and  wealthy  regions  on 
the  continent. 

Our  view  included  portions  of  seven  counties  in  the  State  of  New  York, 
and  of  three  in  Connecticut,  with  numerous  little  inland  villages.  In 
the  extreme  north-west  were  the  Katzbergs,  and,  in  the  north-east,  the 


XOETHERN   VIEW  EKOM  THE  STORM  KING. 


Taghkanick  range,  with  the  hills  of  western  Massachusetts  and  Con- 
necticut. Almost  at  our  feet  lay  Cornwall,  and  a  little  beyond  were  New 
Windsor  and  Canterbury,  and  the  whole  country  back  of  Newburgh, 
made  memorable  by  events  of  the  war  for  independence.  Before  us  lay 
the  old  camp-grounds  of  the  Continental  Army,  the  spot  wlicre  the 
patriotism  of  the  ofB.cers  was  tried  to  the  utmost  in  the  spring  of  1783,  as 
already  explained  ;  the  quarters  occupied  by  Washington  at  New  Windsor 


THE    HUDSON.  .  215 


and  Newburgli ;  of  Lafayette,  at  the  Square  ;  of  Greene  and  Knos,  at 
Morton's ;  and  of  Steuben,  at  Vcrplanck's.  There  was  Plum  Point  and 
Pollopell's  Island,  between  which  a  sort  of  clievaux-de-frise  was  constructed 
in  1776.  Pollopell's  Island  lay  beneath  us.  The  solitary  house  of  a  fisher- 
man upon  it  appeared  like  a  wren's  cage  in  size,  and  the  kingdom  of  his 
insane  wife,  who  imagines  herself  to  be  the  Queen  of  England,  and  her 
husband  the  Prince  Consort,  seemed  not  much  larger  than  one  of  her 
spouse's  drag-nets.  If  he  is  not  a  Prince  Consort,  he  is  the  sole  ruler  of 
the  little  domain  which  he  inhabits,  and  he  may  say,  as  did  Selkirk — • 

"  I  am  monarch  of  all  I  sun-ey, 

Mj-  right  there  is  none  fo  dispute, 
From  the  centre  all  round  to  the  sea, 
I  am  lord  of  the  fowl  and  the  brute." 

The  passing  trains  upon  the  Hudson  River  Railway,  and  large 
steamers,  and  more  than  forty  sail  of  vessels  of  all  sizes,  seen  upon  the 
river  at  the  same  time,  appeared  almost  like  toys  for  children.  Yet  small 
as  they  seemed,  and  diminutive  as  we  must  have  appeared  from  below, 
signals  with  white  handkerchiefs,  given  by  some  of  our  party,  brought 
responses  in  kind  from  the  windows  of  the  railway  cars. 

The  view  southward  from  the  summit  of  the  Storm  King  is  not  so 
extensive  as  northward  and  westward,  but  includes  an  exceedingly 
interesting  region.  In  the  distance,  on  the  south-east,  beyond  the  range 
of  wooded  hills  that  bound  the  view  from  less  elevated  emiaences  of  the 
Highlands,  the  fine  cultivated  hill  country  of  Putnam  County  was  seen. 
Anthony's  Nose,  Bear  Mountain,  and  the  Dunderberg,  at  theii-  southern 
entrance,  were  too  high  to  permit  glimpses  of  "Westchester  and  Eockland 
counties  below.  These  may  be  seen  from  the  Great  Beacon  Hill  of  the 
Fishkill  range,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river.  With  a  good  telescope 
the  city  of  New  York  may  also  be  seen.  But  within  the  range  of  our 
unaided  vision,  lay  fields  of  action,  the  events  of  which  occupy  large 
spaces  in  history.  There  was  Philipsburg,  where  the  Continental  Army 
was  encamped,  and  almost  every  soldier  was  inoculated  with  the  kine-pox, 
to  shield  him  from  the  ravages  of  the  small-pox.  The  camp,  for  a  while, 
became  a  vast  lazar-house.  There  was  Constitution  Island,  clustered  with 
associations  connected  with  the  faU  of  Forts  Clinton  and  Montgomery, 


116 


THE    HUDSON. 


and  the  Great  Chain,  which  we  shall  presently  consider ;  and  heyond, 
among  tlie  shadows  of  old  trees  at  the  foot  of  the  Sugar-Loaf  Mountain, 
was  seen  the  house  occupied  as  head-quarters  by  Arnold,  from  which  he 
escaped  to  the  Vulture  sloop-of-war,  when  his  treason  was  discovered. 
Only  a  small  portion  of  West  Point  could  be  seen,  for  the  Cro'  Nest  group 
loomed  up  between ;  but  over  these,  more  westward,  the  landscape 
included  the  entire  range  of  higher  hills  away  toward  Chester,  the  Clove, 


SOiriitRX  VIEW    FROM   HIE  S10RM  KI^G. 


and  the  Eamapo  Pass,  with  the  solid-looking  mass  of  the  Shiinnemunk 
beyond  Canterbur)-. 

It  was  after  meridian  when  we  had  finished  our  observations  from  the 
lofty  head  of  the  Storm  King,  and  sat  down  to  lunch  in  the  broken 
shadows  of  a  stunted  pine-tree.  We  descended  the  mountain  by  the  path 
tliat  we  went  up,  and  at  Cornwall  took  a  skiff  and  rowed  to  West  Point, 
making  some  sketches  and  observations  by  the  way.     When  a  little  below 


THE    HUDSON. 


517 


the  Storm  King  Valley,  we  came  to  tlie  higli  bluff  known  as  KidcVs  Plug 
Cliff,  where  the  rocks  rise  almost  perpendicularly  several  hundred  feet 
from  debris  near  the  water's  edge,   which  is  covered  with  shrubbery. 


KIDIi'S  PLUG   CLII'F. 


High  up  on  the  smooth  face  of  the  rock,  is  a  raass  slightly  projecting, 
estimated  to  be  twelve  feet  in  diameter,  and  by  form  and  position 
suggesting,  even  to  the  dullest  imagination,  the  idea  of  an  enormous  plug 

F    F 


218 


THE   HUDSON. 


stopping  an  oiifioe.  The  fancy  of  some  one  has  given  it  the  name  of 
Captain  Kidd's  Plug,  in  deference  to  the  common  belief  that  that  noted 
pirate  buried  immense  sums  of  money  and  other  treasures  somewhere  in 
the  Highlands.  Within  a  few  years  ignorant  and  credulous  persons, 
misled  by  pretended  seers  in  the  clairvoyant  condition,  have  dug  in  search 
of  those  treasures  in  several  places  near  "West  Point ;  and  some,  it  is  said, 
have   been   ignorant   and  credulous  enough  to  believe  that  the  almost 


CROW'S  NEST. 


mythical  buccaneer  had,  by  some  supernatural  power,  mounted  these  rocks 
to  the  point  where  the  projection  is  seen,  discovered  there  an  excavation, 
deposited  vast  treasures  within  it,  and  secured  them  by  inserting  the 
enormous  stone  plug  seen  from  the  waters  below.  It  is  plainly  visible 
from  vessels  passing  near  the  western  shore. 

Kidd's  Plug  Cliff  is  a  part  of  the  group  of  hiUs  which  form  Cro'  Nest 
(the  abbreviation  of  Crow's  Nest),  a  name  given  to  a  huge  hollow  among 


THE   HUDSON.  219 


the  summits  of  these  hills.  They  are  rocky  heights,  covered  with  trees 
and  shrubbery,  and,  by  their  grouping,  seen  from  particular  points  of  view, 
suggest  the  idea  of  an  enormous  crow's  nest.  By  some  the  signal  high 
summit  above  the  Plug  Cliff  is  called  Cro'  Nest ;  and  it  is  in  allusion  to 
that  lofty  hill  that  Morris,  its  "neighbour  over  tlie  way,"  wrote — 

"  Where  Hudson'a  waves  o'er  silvery  sands 
Winds  tllrough  tiie  liills  afar, 
And  Cro'  Nest  lilie  a  monarch  stands, 
Crowned  witli  a  sinMe  star." 


CHAPTEE    XII. 

^gj^^  S  -we  passed  the  foot  of  Cro'  Nest,  wc  caught  pleasant 
V^  glimpses  of  West  Point,  where  the  government  of 
the  United  States  has  a  military  school,  and  in  a 
few  moments  the  whole  outline  of  the  promontory 
and  the  grand  ranges  of  hills  around  and  beyond  it, 
was  in  full  view.  AVe  landed  in  a  sheltered  cove  a 
little  above  Camp  Town,  the  station  of  United 
States  troops  and  other  residents  at  the  Point,  and  climbed  a  very  steep 
hill  to  the  Cemetery  upon  its  broad  and  level  summit,  more  than  a 
hundred  feet  above  the  river.  It  is  a  shaded,  quiet,  beautiful  retreat, 
consecrated  to  the  repose  of  the  dead,  and  having  thoughtful  visitors  at 
all  hours  on  pleasant  days. 

"  There,  side  by  side,  the  dark  gi-een  cedars  cluster, 
Like  sentries  watching  by  thai  camp  of  death  ; 
There,  like  an  army's  tents,  with  snow-whi  e  lustre. 
The  grave-stones  gleam  beneath. 

"  Few  are  the  graves,  for  here  no  populous  city 
Feeds,  with  its  mjTiad  lives,  tlie  hungry  Fate  ; 
While  hourly  funerals,  led  by  grief  or  pity. 
Crowd  through  the  open  gate. 

"  Here  sleep  brave  men,  who,  in  the  deadly  quarrel, 
Fought  for  their  country,  and  theii'  life-blood  pom-ed ; 
Above  whose  dust  she  carves  the  deatliless  laurel, 
Wreathing  the  victor's  sword. 

"And  here  the  young  cadet,  in  manly  beaulj', 

Borne  from  the  tents  which  skirt  those  rocky  banks, 
Called  from  life's  daily  drill  and  perilous  duty 
To  these  unbroken  ranks  " 

The  most  conspicuous  object  in  the  Cemetery  is  the  Cadet's  Monument, 
situated  at  the  eastern  angle.  It  is  a  short  column,  of  castle  form, 
composed  of  light  brown  hewn  stone,  surmounted  by  military  emblems 


THE    HUDSON. 


>1 


and  a  foliated  memorial  urn,  wrought  from  the  same  material.  It  was 
erected  in  the  autumn  of  1818,  to  the  memory  of  Yincent  M.  Lowe,  of 
New  York,  by  his  brother  cadets.  He  was  accidentally  killed  by  the 
discharge  of  a  cannon,  on  the  1st  of  January,  1817.  The  names  of  several 
other  officers  and  cadets  are  inscribed  upon  the  monument,  it  having  been 
adopted  by  the  members  of  the  institution  as  "  sacred  to  the  memory  of 
the  deceased  "  whose  names  are  there  recorded. 


^■•^o.-' 


CADET'S  MOMUMEMT. 


From  the  brow  of  the  hill,  near  the  Cadet's  Monument,  is  a  compre- 
hensive view  of  the  picturesque  village  of  Cold  Spring,  on  the  east  side  of 
the  river,  occupying  a  spacious  alluvial  slope,  bounded  by  rugged  heights 
on  the  north,  and  connected,  behind  a  range  of  quite  lofty  mountains,  with 
the  fertile  valleys  of  Duchess  and  Putnam  Counties.     We  shall  visit  it 


222 


THE   HUDSON. 


presently.  Meanwhile  let  us  turn  our  eyes  southward,  and  from  another 
point  on  the  margin  of  the  Cemetery,  where  a  lovely  shaded  walk  invites 
tlie  strollers  on  warm  afternoons,  survey  Camp  Town  at  our  feet,  with 
West  Point  and  the  adjacent  hiUs.  In  this  view  we  see  the  Old  Landing- 
place,  the  road  up  to  the  plateau,  the  Laboratory  building?,  the  Siege 
Battery,  the  Hotel,  near  the  remains  of  old  Fort  Clinton,  upon  the  highest 
ground  on  the  plain,  the  blue  dome  of  the  Chapel,  the  turrets  of  the  great 


COLD  SPRING,  FROM  THE   CEMETERV. 


Mess  Hall,  on  the  extreme  right,  the  Cove,  crossed  by  the  Hudson  River 
Eailway,  and  the  range  of  hills  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  river. 

Following  this  walk  to  the  entrance  gate,  we  traverse  a  delightful 
winding  road  along  the  river-bank,  picturesque  at  evciy  turn,  to  the 
parting  of  the  ways.  One  of  these  leads  to  the  Point,  the  other  up  Mount 
Independence,  on  whose  summit  repose  the  grey  old  ruins  of  Fort  Putnam. 
We  had  ascended  that  winding  mountain  road  many  times  before,  and 
listened  to  the  echoes  of  the  sweet  bugle,  or  the  deeper  voices  of  the 
morning  and  evening  gun  at  the  Point.  Now  we  were  invited  by  a 
shady  path,  and  a  desii-c  for  novelty,  from  the  road  between  Forts  "Webb 
and  Putnam,  into  the  deep  rocky  gorge  between  Mount  Independence  and 


THE  HUDSON. 


223 


the  more  lofty  Eedoubt  Hill,  to  the  rear  of  the  old  fortress,  where  it  wears 
the  appearance  of  a  ruined  castle  upon  a  mountain  crag.  The  afternoon 
sun  was  fulling  full  upon  the  mouldering  ruin,  and  the  chaotic  mass  of  rocks 
beneath  it ;  while  the  clear  blue  sky  and  white  clouds  presented  the 
whole  group,  with  accompanying  evergreens,  in  the  boldest  relief. 
Making  our  way  back,  by  another  but  more  difficult  path,  along  the  foot 
of  the  steep  acclivity,  we  soon  stood  upon  the  broken  walls  of  Fort 
Putnam,  500  feet  above  the  river,  with  a  scene  before  us  of  unsurpassed 
interest  and  beauty,  viewed  in  the  soft  light  of  the  evening  sun.     At  our 


MXST   POINT,   FRUJI  ']HE   CEMETERV. 


feet  lay  the  promontory  of  West  Point,  with  its  Military  Academy,  the 
quarters  of  the  officers  and  the  cadets,  and  other  buildings  of  the 
institution.  To  the  left  lay  Constitution  Island,  from  a  point  of  which, 
where  a  ruined  wall  now  stands,  to  the  ojjposite  shore  of  the  main,  a 
massive  iron  chain  was  laid  upon  floating  timbers  by  the  Americans,  at 
the  middle  of  the  old  war  for  independence.  Beyond  the  island  arose  the 
smoke  of  the  furnaces  and  forges,  the  spires,  and  the  roofs  of  Cold  Spring. 
Toward  the  left  loomed  up  the  lofty  Mount  Taurus,  vulgarly  called  Bull 
Hill,  at  whose  base,  in  the  shadow  of  a  towering  wall  of  rock,  and  in  the 


224 


THE   HUDSON. 


midst  of  grand  old  trees,  nestles  Under  Cliff,  then  the  homo  of  Morris, 
whose  songs  have  delighted  thousands  in  hoth  hemispheres.  On  the 
extreme  left  arose  old  Cro'  Nest;  and  over  its  right  shoulder  lay  the 
rugged  range  of  Break  Neck,  dipping  to  the  river  sufficiently  to  reveal  the 
beautiful  country  beyond,  on  the  borders  of  Newburgh  Bay.  This  is  one 
of  the  most  attractive  points  of  view  on  the  Hudson. 


i'onT  PL'T^AM,  TEOM  IHE   WEST. 

"Fort  Putnam  was  erected  by  the  Americans  in  1778,  for  the  purpose  of 
defending  Fort  Clinton,  on  "West  Point  below,  and  to  more  thoroughly 
secure  the  river  against  the  passage  of  liostile  fleets.  It  was  built  under 
the  direction  of  Colonel  Ilufus  Putnam,  and  chiefly  by  the  men  of  his 
Massachusett's  regiment.  It  commanded  the  river  above  and  below  the 
Point,  and  was  almost  impregnable,  owing  to  its  po  ition.     In  front,  the 


& 


THE   HUDSON. 


225 


mountain  is  quite  steep  for  many  yards,  and  then  slopes  gently  to  the 
plain  ;  while  on  its  western  side,  a  perpendicular  wall  of  rock,  fifty  feet 
in  height,  would  have  been  presented  to  the  enemy.  Redoubts  were  also 
built  upon  other  eminences  in  the  vicinity.  These  being  chiefly  earth 
works,  have  been  almost  obliterated  by  the  action  of  storms ;  and  Fort 
Putnam  was  speedily  disappearing  under  the  hands  of  industrious 
neighbours,  who  were  carrying  off  the  st^no  for  building  purposes,  when 


VIEW  rBOlI  FORT  PUTKAM. 


the  work  of  demolition  was  arrested  by  the  Government.  Its  remains, 
consisting  of  only  broken  walls  and  two  or  three  arched  casemates,  all 
overgrown  with  vines  and  shrubbery,  are  now  carefully  preserved.  Even 
the  cool  spring  that  bubbles  from  the  rocks  in  its  centre,  is  kept  clear  of 
choking  leaves ;  and  we  may  reasonably  hope  that  the  ruins  of  Fort 
Putnam  will  remain,  an  object  of  interest  to  the  passing  traveller,  for  more 
than  a  century  to  come. 

G    o 


226 


THE  HUDSON. 


The  winding  road  from  the  fort  to  the  plain  is  quite  steep  much  of  the 
way,  but  is  so  well  wrought  that  carriages  may  safely  traverse  it ;  and  the 
tourist  is  led  by  it  to  one  of  the  loveliest  of  river  and  mountain  views 
northward  from  the  Point,  in  front  of  the  residences  of  Mr.  Weir,  the 
eminent  artist,  and  other  professors  employed  in  the  Military  Academy. 
Passing  along  the  shaded  walk  in  front  of  these  mansions,  on  the  margin 
of  a  high  bank,  a  white  marble  obelisk  is  seen  upon  a  grassy  knoll  on  the 
left,  shooting  up  from  a  cluster  of  dark  evergreen  trees.  It  was  erected 
by  Major-Gencral  Jacob  Brown,  of  the  United  States  ai'my,  in  memory  of 


LIEDTENANT-COLONEL  WOOD'S  MONUMENT. 


Tiis  youtbful  and  well  beloved  companion-in-arms,  Lieutenant-Colonel  E. 
D.  "Wood,  of  the  corps  of  Engineers,  who  fell  while  heading  a  charge,  at 
the  sortie  of  Fort  Erie,  in  Upper  Canada,  on  the  I7th  of  September,  1814. 
He  had  been  a  pupil  of  the  Military  Academy  at  "West  Point.  "He 
was,"  says  one  of  the  inscriptions,  "exemplary  as  a  Christian,  and 
distinguished  as  a  soldier." 

Passing  a  little  farther  on,  a  gravelled  walk  diverges  riverward,  and 
leads  down  to  the  Siege  Battery  of  sis  guns,  erected  by  the  cadets  while 
in  the  performance  of  their   practical   exercises  in   engineering.     The 


THE  HUDSON. 


227 


cannon  were  housed,  and  no  gunners  were  near,  yet  the  works  appeared 
formidable.  They  were  composed  of  gabions,  covered  with  turf,  soft  and 
even  as  fine  velvet.  The  battery  commands  one  of  the  most  pleasing  views 
from  the  Point,  comprising  Constitution  Island,  Mount  Taurus,  and  Break 
Neck  on  the  right ;  Cro'  N"est  and  the  Storm  King  on  the  left ;  and  ten 
miles  of  the  river,  with  Pollopell's  Island  and  the  shores  above  Newburgh 
in  the  centre.  A  similar  view  is  obtained  from  the  piazza  of  Eoe's  Hotel, 
on  the  brow  of  the  hiU  jjist  above. 

A   little  westward  of  the    Siege   Battery  are   the   buildings  of  the 


VIEW   iltUM   THK  SlliGJi   UATTKKV. 


Laboratory  of  the  institution,  in  which  are  deposited  some  interestino- 
relics  of  the  old  war  for  independence.  One  of  the  most  attractive  groups 
among  these  relics  was  composed  of  several  links  of  the  great  iron  chain, 
already  mentioned,  that  spanned  the  river,  enclosing  a  large  brass  mortar, 
taken  from  the  British  at  Stoney  Point,  by  "Wayne,  and  two  smaller  ones, 
that  were  among  the  spoils  of  victory  at  Saratoga.  There  were  a  dozen 
links  of  the  chain,  and  two  huge  clevises.  The  links  were  made  of  iron 
bars,  2J  inches  square.  Theii'  average  length  was  a  little  over  2  feet, 
and  their  weight  about  140  pounds  each.     The  chain  was  stretched  across 


228 


THE   HUDSON. 


the  river  at  tlio  narrowest  place,  just  atovo  Gee's  Point  (the  extreme 
rocky  end  of  West  Point)  and  Constitution  Island.  It  was  laid  across  R 
boom  of  heavy  logs,  that  floated  near  together.  These  were  16  feet  long, 
and  pointed  at  each  end,  so  as  to  offer  little  resistance  to  the  tidal  currents. 
The  chain  was  fastened  to  these  logs  by  staples,  and  at  each  shore  by  huge 
blocks  of  wood  and  stone.  This  chain  and  boom  seemed  to  afford  an 
efficient  barrier  to  the  passage  of  vessels  ;  but  their  strength  was  never 
tested,  as  the  keel  of  an  enemy's  ship  never  ploughed  the  Hudson  after 


lllb   Lri.\l    tlHIN. 


the  fleet  of  Vaughan  passed  up  and  down  in  the  autumn  of  1777,  and 
performed  its  destructive  mission. 

The  views  from  Roe's  Hotel,  on  the  extreme  northern  verge  of  the 
summit  of  the  plain  of  West  Point,  are  very  pleasing  in  almost  every 
direction.  The  one  northward,  similar  to  that  from  the  Siege  Battery,  is 
the  finest.  Westward  the  eye  takes  in  the  Laboratory,  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Wood's  Monument,  a  part  of  the  shaded  walk  along  the  northern 
margin  of  the  plain,  and  Mount  Independence,  crowned  with  the  ruins  of 
Fort  Putnam.  Southward  the  view  comprehends  the  entire  Parade,  and 
glimpses,  through  the  trees,  of  the  Academy,  the  Chapel,  the  Mess  Hall, 


THE    HUDSON. 


229 


and  other  buildings  of  the  institution,  with  some  of  the  officers'  quarters 
and  professors'  residences  on  the  extreme  right.  The  earthworks  of  Fort 
Clinton  have  recently  been  restored,  in  their  original  form  and  general 
proportions,  exactly  wpon  their  ancient  site,  and  present,  with  the 
beautiful  trees  growing  within  their  green  banks,  a  very  pleasant  object 
from  every  point  of  view.  The  old  fort  was  constructed  in  the  spring 
of  1778,  under  the  direction  of  the  brave  Polish  soldier,  Thaddeus 
Kosciuszko,  who  was  then  a  colonel  in  the  Continental  Army,  and  chief 


WiSl'EBX  VIliW,   FKOM  KUE  S  HOTEL. 


of  the  Engineers'  corps.  The  fort,  when  completed,  was  600  yards 
around,  within  the  walls.  The  embankments  were  21  feet  at  the  base, 
and  14  feet  in  height.  Barracks  and  huts  sufficient  to  accommodate  six 
hundred  persons  were  erected  within  the  fort.  It  stood  upon  a  cliff,  on 
the  margin  of  the  plain,  180  feet  above  the  river. 

Kosciuszko  was  much  beloved  by  the  Eevolutionary  Army,  and  his 
memory  is  held  in  reverence  by  the  American  people.  He  was  only 
twenty  years  of  age  when  he  joined  that  army.  He  had  been  educated 
at  the  Military  School  of  "Warsaw.     He  had  not  completed  his  studies. 


230 


THE   HUDSON. 


■when  he  eloped  with  a  beautiful  girl  of  high  rank.  They  were  overtaken 
by  the  maiden's  father,  who  made  a  violent  attempt  to  seize  his  daughter. 
The  young  Pole  was  compelled  cither  to  slay  the  father  or  abandon 
the  daughter.  Ho  chose  the  latter,  and  obtaining  the  permission  of  his 
sovereign,  he  went  to  Franco,  and  there  became  a  student  in  drawing 
and  military  science.  In  Paris  he  was  introduced  to  Dr.  Pranklin,  and, 
fired  with  a  desire  to  aid  a  people  fighting  for  independence,  he  sailed  for 
America,  bearing  letters  from  that  minister.     He  applied  to  Washington 


-:;Tj#.i 


THE  PABADE. 


for  employment.  "What  do  you  seek  here?"  asked  the  leader  of  the 
armies  of  the  revolted  colonies.  "I  come  to  fight  as  a  volunteer  for 
ATuerican  independence,"  the  young  Pole  replied.  "What  can  you  do  ?" 
Washington  asked.  "  Try  me,"  was  Kosciuszko's  prompt  reply.  Pleased 
with  the  young  man,  Washington  took  him  into  his  military  family. 
The  Congress  soon  afterwards  appointed  him  engineer,  with  the  rank  of 
colonel.  He  returned  to  Poland  at  the  close  of  the  Revolution,  and  was 
made  a  major-general  under  Poniatowski.  He  was  at  the  head  of  the 
military  movements  of  the  Eevolution  in  Poland,  in  1794,  and  was  made 


THE   HUDSON. 


231 


a  prisoner,  and  carried  to  St.  Petersburg.     This  event  caused  Campbell 
to  write — 

"  Hope  for  a  season  bade  the  earth  farewell, 
And  freedom  shrieked  when  Kosciuszko  fell." 

After  the   Empress   Catherine  died,  the  Emperor   Paul  liberated  him, 
offered  him  command  in  the  Russian  service,  and  presented  him  with  his 


KObCILb/KUS  ■MOM'\IE>T 


own  sword.  He  declined  it,  saying,  "  T  no  longer  need  a  sword,  since  I 
have  no  longer  a  country  to  defend."  He  revisited  the  United  States  in 
1797,  when  the  Congress  granted  him  land  in  consideration  of  his  services. 
He  afterwards  lived  in  Switzerland,  and  there  he  died  in  1817.  A 
public  funeral  was  made  for  him  at  Warsaw.  Twelve  years  afterwards, 
the  cadets  of  West  Point,  actuated  by  love  for  the  man  and  reverence  for 


232 


•THE   HUDSON. 


his  deeds,  erected  a  beautiful  marble  monument  to  his  memory,  within  the 
ruins  of  Old  Fort  Clinton,  at  a  cost  of  about  $5,000.  It  bears  upon  one 
side  the  name  of — "  Kosciuszko,"  and  on  another,  the  simple  inscription 
— "Erected  by  the  Coiirs  of  Cadets,  1828."  It  is  a  conspicuous  and 
pleasing  object  to  voyagers  upon  the  river. 

Passing  along  the  verge  of  the  cliflF,  southward  from  Kosciuszko's 
monument,  the  visitor  soon  reaches  another  memorial  stone.  It  is  of 
white  marble,  the  chief  member  being  a  fluted  column,  entwined  by  u 
laurel  wreath,  held  in  the  beak  of  an  eagle,  perched  upon  its  top.     The 


DADE'S  COM.MAND'3  MONU.MEKT. 


pedestal  is  of  temple  form,  square,  with  a  row  of  encircling  stars  upon  its 
entablature,  and  a  cannon,  like  a  supporting  column,  at  each  corner.  It 
was  erected  to  commemorate  a  battle  fought  between  a  detachment  of 
United  States  troops,  under  Major  Francis  L.  Dade,  and  a  party  of 
Seminole  Indians,  in  the  Everglades  of  Florida,  on  the  28th  of  December, 
1835.  The  detachment  consisted  of  one  hundred  and  eight  men,  all  of 
whom,  save  three,  were  massacred  by  the  savages  on  that  occasion.  The 
troops  nobly  defended  themselves,  and  made  no  attempt  to  retreat. 
Their  remains  repose  near  St.  Augustine,  in  Florida.     This  monument 


THE    HUDSON. 


233 


was  erected  by  tlie  three  regiments  and  the  medical  staff,  from  which  the 
detachment  was  selected. 

A  few  feet  from  Dade's  Command's  Monument,  a  narrow  path,  through 
a  rocky  passage,  overhung  with  boughs  and  shrubbery,  leads  down  to  a 
pleasant  terrace  in  the  steep  bank  of  the  river,  which  is  called  Kosciuszko's 
Garden.     At  the  back  of  the  terrace  the  i-ock  rises  perpendicularly,  and 


KOSCIUSZKO'S  GARDEN. 


from  its  outer  edge  descends  as  perpendicularly  to  the  river.  This  is  said 
to  have  been  Kosciuszko's  favourite  place  of  resort  for  reading  and 
meditation,  while  he  was  at  West  Point.  He  found  a  living  spring 
bubbling  from  the  rocks,  in  the  middle  of  the  terrace,  and  there  he 
constructed  a  pretty  little  fountain.  Its  ruins  were  discovered  in  1802, 
and  repaired.     The  water  now  rises  into   a   marble  basin.     Seats  have 

n  II 


234 


THE   HUDSON. 


bccu  provided  for  visitors,  ornamental  shrubs  have  been  planted,  and  the 
■whole  place  wears  an  aspect  of  mingled  romance  and  beauty.  A  deep 
circular  indentation  in  the  rock  back  of  the  fountain  was  made,  tradition 
affirms,  by  a  cannon-ball  sent  from  a  British  ship,  while  the  Polish 
soldier  was  occupying  his  accustomed  loitering  place,  reading  Vauban, 
and  regaled  by  the  perfume  of  roses.  From  this  quiet,  solitary  retreat,  a 
pathway,  appropriately  called  Flirtation  Walk,  leads  up  to  the  plain. 

A  short  distance  from  Kosciuszko's  Garden,  upon  a  higher  terrace,  is 
Battery  Knox,  constructed  by  the  cadets.     It  commands  a  fine  view  of 


VIKW  rKOM  BATTEKY  KSUX. 


the  eastern  shore  of  the  Hudson,  in  the  Highlunds,  and  down  the  river 
to  Anthony's  Nose.  Near  by  are  seen  the  Cavalry  Stables  and  the 
Cavalry  Exercise  Hall,  belonging  to  the  Military  School ;  and  below 
there  is  seen  the  modern  West  Point  Landing.  A  little  higher  up,  on 
the  plain,  are  the  groups  of  spacious  edifices,  used  for  the  purposes  of  the 
institution. 

West  Point  was  indicated  by  Washington,  as  early  as   1783,  as  an 
eligible  place  for  a  military  academy.     In  his  message  to  the  Congress  in 


THE   HUDSON.  235 


1793,  he  recommended  the  establishment  of  one  at  West  Point.  The 
subject  rested  until  1802,  -when  Congress  made  provision  by  law  for  such 
an  institution  there.  Very  little  progress  was  made  in  the  matter  until 
the  year  1812,  when,  by  another  act  of  Congress,  a  corps  of  engineers 
and  professors  were  organised,  and  the  school  was  endowed  with  the  most 
attractive  features  of  a  literary  institution,  mingled  with  that  of  a 
military  character.  From  that  time  until  the  present,  tlio  academy  has 
been  increasing  in  importance,  as  the  nursery  of  arniy  officers  and  skilful 
practical  engineers. 

The  buildings  of  the  West  Point  Military  Academy  consisted,  at  the 
time  we  are  considering,  of  cadets'  barracks,  cadets'  guard-house, 
academy,  mess  hall,  hospital  of  cadets,  chapel,  observatory,  and  library, 
artillery  laboratory,  hospital  for  troops,  equipments  shed,  engineer  troops' 
barracks,  post  guard-house,  dragoons'  barracks,  artillery  barracks,  cavalry 
exercise  hall,  cavalry  stables,  powder  magazine,  the  quarters  of  the 
officers  and  professors  of  the  Academy,  worksliops,  commissary  of  cadets 
and  sutlers'  store,  shops  and  cottages  for  the  accommodation  of  non- 
commissioned officers  and  their  families,  laundresses  of  the  cadets,  &c. 
Tlie  principal  edifices  are  built  of  granite. 

The  post  is  under  the  general  command  of  a  superintendent,  who  bears 
the  rank  of  brevet-colonel.  The  average  number  of  cadets  was  about  two 
liundred  and  fifty.  Candidates  for  admission  are  selected  by  the  War 
Department  at  Washington  city,  and  they  are  required  to  report 
themselves  for  examination  to  tlie  superintendent  of  the  academy  between 
the  first  and  twentieth  day  of  June.  None  are  admitted  who  are  less 
than  sixteen  or  more  than  twenty-one  years  of  ago,  who  are  less  than  five 
feet  in  height,  or  who  are  deformed  or  otherwise  unfit  for  military  duty. 
Each  cadet,  on  admission,  is  obliged  to  subscribe  his  name  to  an  agreement 
to  serve  in' the  amiy  of  the  United  States  four  years,  in  addition  to  his 
four  years  of  instruction,  unless  sooner  discharged  by  competent 
authority. 

The  course  of  instruction  consists  of  infantry  tactics  and  military 
policy,  mathematics,  the  French  language,  natural  philosophy,  drawing, 
chemistry,  mineralogy,  artillery  tactics,  the  science  of  gunnery  and  the 
duties  of  a  military  laboratory,   engineering  and  the  science  of  war. 


236 


THE   HUDSON. 


geography,  history  and  ethics,  the  use  of  the  sword,  and  cavalry  exercise 
and  tactics.  The  rules  and  regulations  of  the  academy  are  very  strict  and 
salutary,  and  the  instruction  in  all  departments  is  thorough  and  complete. 
The  road  from  the  plain  to  the  landing  at  "West  Point  was  cut  from  the 
steep  rocky  bank  of  the  river,  at  a  heavy  expense  to  the  government. 
The  wharf  is  spacious,  and  there  a  sentinel  was  continually  posted,  with 
a  slate  and  pencil,  to  record  the  names  of  all  persons  who  arrive  and 
depart.     This  was  for  the  use  of  the  Superintendent,  by  which  means  he 


THE  BEVERLY  HOUSE. 


is  informed  daily  of  the  arrival  of  any  persona  to  whom  he  might  wish  to 
extend  personal  or  professional  courtesies. 

A  steam  ferry-boat  connects  "West  Point  with  the  Garrison  Station  of 
the  Hudson  River  Railway,  opposite.  Near  the  latter  is  the  old  ferry- 
place  of  the  Revolution,  where  troops  crossed  to  and  from  "West  Point. 
Here  "Washington  crossed  on  the  morning  when  General  Arnold's  treason 


THE   HUDSON.  237 


was   discovered,   and  here  he  held   a   most   anxious   consultation  with 
Colonel  Hamilton  when  that  event  was  suspected. 

We  crossed  the  ferry  to  Garrison's,  and  from  the  road  near  the  station 
ohtained  a  pleasant  view  of  "West  Point,  glimpses  of  the  principal 
buildings  there,  and  the  range  of  lofty  hills  beyond,  which  form  the 
group  of  the  Cro'  Nest  and  the  Storm  King.  Following  a  winding  road 
up  the  east  bank  of  the  river  from  this  point,  we  came  to  a  mill,  almost 
hidden  among  the  trees  at  the  head  of  a  dark  ravine,  through  which  flows 
a  clear  mountain  stream,  called  Kedron  Brook,  wherefore,  I  could  not 
learn,  for  there  is  no  resemblance  to  Jerusalem  or  the  Valley  of  Jeho- 
shaphat  near.  It  is  a  portion  of  the  beautiful  estate  of  Ardenia,  the 
property  of  Richard  Arden,  Esq.  His  son.  Lieutenant  Thomas  Arden,  a 
graduate  of  the  West  Point  Military  Academy,  owns  and  occupies  Beverly, 
near  by,  the  former  residence  of  Colonel  Beverly  Robinson  (an  eminent 
American  loyalist  during  the  war  for  independence),  and  the  head-quarters 
of  General  Benedict  Arnold  at  the  time  of  his  treason.  It  is  situated 
upon  a  broad  and  fertile  terrace,  at  the  foot  of  Sugar-Loaf  Mountain,  one 
of  the  eastern  ranges  of  the  Highlands,  which  rises  eight  hundred  feet 
above  the  plain. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 


j^;3T  was  mid-autumn  when  wc  visited  13everly  House,  and  tho 
Sugar-Loaf  Mountain,  at  the  foot  of  which  it  stands, 
cxliibited  those  gorgeous  hues  which  give  such  unequalled 
splendour  to  American  forests  at  that  season  of  the  year. 
The  beautiful  hues  of  the  foliage  of  the  maple,  hickory, 
chestnut,  birch,  sassafras,  and  several  other  kinds  of 
deciduous  trees  in  the  Northern  and  Middle  States,  seen  just 
hcfore  the  falling  of  the  leaf  in  autumn,  are  almost  unknown 
in  Europe.  A  picture  by  Cropsey,  one  of  the  most  eminent 
of  living  American  landscape  painters,  in  which  this  pecu- 
liarity of  foliage  was  represented,  drew  from  one  of  the  minor  English 
poets  the  following  sonnet : — 


CROPSEY'S   "AUTUMN    ON   THE    HUDSON." 

[Addressed  to  J.  T.  Field,  of  Boston.] 

Forgot  are  Summer  and  our  English  air ; 

Here  is  your  Autumn  with  her  wondrous  dyes  ; 

Silent  and  vast  your  forests  round  us  rise  : 

God,  glorified  in  Nature,  fronts  us  there. 

In  His  transcendent  works  as  heavenly  fair 

As  when  they  first  seemed  good  unto  His  eyes. 

See,  what  a  brightness  on  the  canvas  lies  ! 

Hues,  seen  not  iicre,  flash  on  us  everywhere  ; 

Kadiance  that  Nature  hiH'e  from  us  conceals ; 

Glory  with  wliich  she  beautifies  decay 

In  your  far  world,  this  master's  hand  reveals. 

Wafting  our  blest  sight  from  dimmed  streets  away,— 

With  what  rare  power !— to  where  our  awed  soul  kneels 

To  Him  who  bade  these  splendours  light  the  day. 

VV.  C.  Ben.vett. 


From  the  summit  is  a  grand  and  extensive  view  of  the  surrounding 
scenery,  which  Dr.  Dwight  (afterwards  President  of  Tale  College) 
described,  in  1778,  as  "majestic,  solemn,  wild,  and  melancholy."  Dwight 
was  then  chaplain  of  a  Connecticut  regiment  stationed  at  "West  Point, 
and  ascended  the  Sugar  Loaf  with  the  soldier-poet.  Colonel  Humphreys. 


THE   HUDSON.  239 


TJuder  the  inspiration  of  feeling  awakened  by  the  grandeur  of  the  sight, 
he  conceived  and  partly  composed  his  prophetic  hymn,  beginning  with 
the  words — 

"Columbia!  Culumbia!  to  glorj- arise, 
The  queen  uf  the  world  and  the  child  of  the  skies." 

General  Arnold  was  at  the  mansion  of  Colonel  Robinson  (Beverly 
House)  on  the  morning  of  the  24th  of  September,  1780,  fully  persuaded 
that  his  treasonable  plans  for  surrendering  "West  Point  and  its  dependencies 
into  the  hands  of  Sir  Henry  Clinton,  the  British  commander-in-chief, — 
then  in  possession  of  New  York, — for  the  consideration  of  a  brigadier's 
commission  in  the  British  army,  and  £10,000  in  gold,  were  working 
prosperously.  This  subject  we  shall  consider  more  in  detail  hereafter. 
We  will  only  notice,  in  this  connection,  events  that  occurred  at  the  Beverly 
House. 

Major  Andre,  Arnold's  immediate  accomplice  in  treasonable  designs, 
had,  in  a  personal  interview,  arranged  the  details  of  the  wicked  bargain, 
and  left  for  New  York.  Arnold  believed  he  had  arrived  there  in  safety, 
with  all  requisite  information  for  Sir  Henry ;  and  that  before  "Washington's 
return  from  Connecticut,  whither  he  had  gone  to  hold  a  conference  with 
llochambeau  and  other  French  officers,  Clinton  would  have  sailed  up  the 
Hudson  and  taken  possession  of  the  Highland  fortresses.  But  Ambe  did 
not  reach  New  York.  He  was  captured  on  his  way,  by  militia-men,  as  a 
suspicious-looking  traveller.  Evidences  of  his  character  as  a  spy  were 
found  upon  his  person,  and  he  was  detained.  Washington  returned 
sooner  than  Arnold  expected  him.  To  the  surprise  of  the  traitor, 
Hamilton  and  Lafayette  reached  the  Beverly  House  early  on  the  morning 
of  the  21th,  and  announced  that  Washington  had  turned  down  to  the 
West  Point  Perry,  and  would  be  with  them  soon.  At  breakfast  Arnold 
received  a  letter  from  an  officer  below,  saying,  "Major  Andre,  of  the 
British  Army,  is  a  prisoner  in  my  custody."  The  traitor  had  reason  to 
expect  that  evidences  of  his  own  guilt  might  arrive  at  any  moment.  He 
concealed  his  emotions.  With  perfect  coolness  he  ordered  a  horse  to  be 
made  ready,  alleging  that  his  presence  was  needed  "over  the  river" 
immediately.  He  then  left  the  table,  went  into  the  great  passage,  and 
hurried  up  the  broad  staircase  to  his  wile's  chamber.    In  brief  and  hui'ried 


240 


THE    HUDSON. 


words  he  told  her  that  they  must  instantly  part,  perhaps  for  ever,  for 
his  life  depended  on  his  reaching  the  enemy's  lines  without  detection. 
Horror-stricken,  the  poor  young  creature,  but  one  year  a  motlicr,  and  not 
two  a  wife,  swooned  and  sank  senseless  upon  the  floor.  Arnold  dare  not 
call  for  assistance,  but  kissing,  with  lips  blasted  by  words  of  guilt  and 
treason,  his  boy,  then  sleeping  in  angel  innocence  and  purity,  he  rushed 
from  the  room,  mounted  a  horse,  hastened  to  the  river,  flung  himself  into 
his  barge,  and  directing  the  six  oarsmen  to  row  swiftly  down  the  Hudson, 
escaped  to  the  Vulture,  a  British  sloop-of-war,  lying  far  below. 


THE  STAIGCASE  OF  TUE  EOIilNSOKS'  HOUSE. 

"Washington  arrived  at  the  Beverly  House  soon  after  Arnold  left  it.  As 
yet  no  suspicion  of  treason  had  entered  his  mind.  After  a  hasty 
breakfast,  he  crossed  to  "West  Point,  expecting  to  find  Arnold  there.  "  I 
have  heard  nothing  from  him  for  two  days,"  said  Colonel  Lamb,  the 
commanding  ofiicer.  "Washington's  suspicions  were  awakened.  He  soon 
re-crossed  the  river,  where  he  was  met  by  Hamilton  with  papers  just 
received  revealing  Arnold's  guilt.  He  called  in  Knox  and  Lafayette  for 
counsel.     "  "Whom  can  we  trust  now  ?  "  he  inquired  with  calmness,  while 


THE   HUDSON. 


241 


deep  sorrow  evidently  stin'cd  his  bosom.  At  the  same  time  the  condition 
of  Jlrs.  Arnold,  who  was  frantic  with  grief  and  apprehension,  awakened 
his   liveliest   sympathies.     "The  general  went  up  to   see  her,"   wrote 


THE   INDLAN  FALLS. 


Hamilton  in  describing  the  scene.  "  She  upbraided  him  with  being  in  a 
plot  to  murder  her  child,  for  she  was  quite  beside  herself.  One  moment 
she  raved ;  another  she  melted  into  tears.     Sometimes  she  pressed  her 


242 


THE   HUDSON. 


iafant  to  her  bosom,  and  lamented  its  fate,  occasioned  by  the  imprudence 
of  its  father,  in  a  manner  that  would  have  moved  insensibility  itself." 
Washington  believed  her  innocent  of  all  previous  knowledge  of  her  hus- 
band's guilt,  and  did  all  in  his  power  to  soothe  her.  "  She  is  as  good  and 
innocent  as  an  angel,  and  as  incapable  of  doing  wrong,"  Arnold  wrote  to 
"Washington,  from  the  Vtdtiire,  imploring  protection  for  his  wife .  and 
child.     Ample  protection  was  afforded,  and  Mrs.  Arnold  and  her  infant 


VIEW  SOUTH  FROM  Df  I  ILH'F. 


were  conveyed  in  safety  to  her  friends.  She  was  the  traitor's  second  wife, 
and  the  daughter  of  Mr.  Shippen,  a  loyalist  of  Philadelphia  ;  and  she  was 
only  eighteen  years  of  age  at  the  time  of  her  marriage  to  Arnold,  while 
he  was  military  governor  of  that  city,  in  1778.  The  child  above- 
mentioned  was  named  James  Robertson  Arnold.  He  entered  the  British 
army,  and  rose  to  the  rank  of  Colonel  of  Engineers.  He  was  at  one  time 
the  aide-de-camp  of  her  Majesty.     In  1841  he  was  transferred  from  the 


THE    HUDSON. 


243 


Engineers'  corps,  and  in  1846  was  a  major-general  and  a  Knight  of  the 
Rojal  Hanoverian  Guelphic  Order. 

Mr.  Arden  kindly  took  us  in  his  carriage  from  Beverly  to  Indian  Brook, 
a  clear  mountain  stream  that  makes  its  way  in  rapids  and  cascades,  through 
a  wild  ravine,  from  the  hills  to  the  river.  It  falls  into  the  deep  marshy 
bay  between  Garrison's  and  Cold  Spring.     We  stopped  on  the  way  to 


1^■DIA^-  BROOK. 


view  the  river  and  mountains  below  West  Point,  from  the  residence  of 
Eugene  Dutihl,  Esq.  His  mansion  is  upon  a  point  of  the  plain,  shaded 
by  a  grove  of'pines,  overlooking  a  deep  dark  dell,  with  a  sparkUng  brook 
in  its  bosom,  on  one  side,  and  the  river  and  grand  mountain  scenery  on 
the  other.  The  view  southward  from  his  piazza  is  one  of  the  most 
interesting   and  beautiful  (though  not  the  most  extensive)  among  the 


244 


THE   HUDSON. 


Highlands,  comprehending  the  site  of  Forts  Clinton  and  Montgomery — 
the  theatre  of  stirring  and  most  important  events  in  the  war  for 
independence.  From  thence  we  passed  along  the  brow  of  the  declivity 
next  the  river,  to  the  mansion  of  Ardenia,  from  which  one  of  the  finest 
views  of  West  Point  may  be  obtained ;  and  then  rode  to  Indian  Brook, 
passing,  on  the  way,  the  ancient  Pliilipsburg  Church — in  which  the  officers 
of  the  Continental  Army  had  worshipped  during  the  Revolution — and  the 
grounds  and  mansions  of  wealthy  residents  in  that  vicinity. 

"We  crossed  Indian  Brook  on  a  rustic  bridge,  just  below  the  Indian 
Falls,  whose  murmur  fell  upon  the  ear  before  we  came  in  sight  of  the 
stream.  These  falls  have  formed  subjects  for  painting  and  poetry,  and 
are  the  delight  of  the  neighbourhood  in  summer.  In  the  small  space 
allotted  for  each  of  our  illustrations  and  accompanying  descriptions,  wc 
can  convey  only  faint  ideas  of  the  wild  beauty  of  the  scenes  we  are  called 
upon  to  depict  in  this  mountain  region  of  the  Hudson.  We  were  on  the 
Indian  Brook  on  a  bright  October  day,  when  the  foliage  was  in  its 
greatest  autumnal  splendour,  and  the  leaves  were  falling  in  gentle  showers 
among  the  trees,  the  rooks,  and  in  the  sparkling  water,  appearing  like 
fragments  of  rainbows  cast,  with  lavish  hand,  into  the  lap  of  earth.  At 
every  turn  of  the  brook,  from  its  springs  to  its  union  with  the  Hudson,  a 
pleasant  subject  for  the  painter's  pencil  is  presented.  Just  below  the 
bridge,  where  the  highway  crosses,  is  one  of  the  most  charming  of  these 
"bits."  There,  in  the  narrow  ravine,  over  which  the  tree  tops  intertwine, 
huge  rocks  are  piled,  some  of  them  covered  with  feathery  fern,  others 
with  soft  green  mosses,  and  others  as  bare  and  angular  as  if  just  broken 
from  some  huge  mass,  and  cast  in  there  by  Titan  hands.  In  midsummer 
this  stream  is  still  more  attractive,  for  there,  as  Street  has  sung  of  the 
Willewemoc, — 

"  A  fresh,  damp  sweetness  fills  the  scene, 

From  dripping  leaf  and  moistened  earth. 
The  odour  of  the  winter  gi-een 

Floats  on  the  airs  that  now  have  birth ; 
Plashes  and  air-bells  all  about 
Proclaim  the  gambols  of  the  trout. 
And  calling  bush  and  answering  tree 
Echo  with  woodland  melody." 

In  the  neighbourhood  of  this  mountain  stream  are  delightful  summer 


<St- 


THE   HUDSON. 


245 


residences,  fitted  for  occupation  all  the  year  round.  Among  the  most 
pleasing  of  these,  in  their  relation  to  the  surrounding  scenery,  are  those 
of  Dr.  Moore,  late  President  of  Columbia  College,  and  Mr.  De  Eham,  a 
retired  merchant.  "We  passed  through  their  grounds  on  our  way  to  Cold 
Spring  village,  and  wished  for  space,  among  our  sketches  of  the  Highland 
scenery,  for  pen  and  pencil  pictures  of  charming  spots  upon  these  and  the 
neighbouring  estates. 

Our  road  to  Cold  Spring  lay  through  the  region  occupied  by  portions  of 


VIEW  FROM  EOSSITERS  MAXSIOr 


the  American  army  at  different  times  during  the  old  war  for  independence. 
There,  in  the  spring  of  1781,  the  troops  and  others  stationed  there  were 
inoculated  with  the  small-pox.  "All  the  soldiers,  with  the  women  and 
children,"'  wrote  Dr.  Thacher,  an  army  surgeon,  "who  have  not  had  the 
small-pox,  are  now  under  inoculation."  "Of  five  hundred  who  were 
inoculated  here,"  he  wrote  subsequently,  "  only  four  have  died."  This 
was  about  fifteen  years  before  Jenner  made  successful  experiments  in 
vaccination. 

This  portion  of  the  Highlands  is  a  charming  region  for  the  tourist  on 


246 


THE   HUDSON, 


the  Hudson ;  and  the  lover  of  nature,  in  her  aspects  of  romantic  beauty 
and  quiet  majesty,  should  never  pass  it  by. 

The  first  glimpse  of  Cold  Spring  village  from  the  road  is  from  the 
iiorthom  slope  of  an  eminence  thickly  sprinkled  with  boulders,  which 
commands  a  perfect  view  of  the  whole  amphitheatre  of  hiUs,  and  the  river 
winding  among  them.  We  turned  into  a  rude  gate  on  the  left,  and 
followed  a  newly-beaten  track  to  the  brow  of  this  eminence,  on  the 
southern  verge  of  which  Eossiter,  the  eminent  painter  (a  copy  of  whose 
picture  of  '  "Washington  at  Mount  Vernon '  was  presented  to  the  Prince  of 
"Wales  at  the  National  Capitol  in  1860),  is  erecting  an  elegant  villa.  The 
house  was  nearly  completed,  but  the  gi'ounds  around  were  in  a  state  of 
transition  from  the  ruggedness  of  the  wilderness  to  the  mingled  aspects  of 
Art  and  Nature,  formed  by  the  direction  of  good  taste.  It  is  a  delightful 
place  for  an  artist  to  reside,  commanding  one  of  the  most  extensive  and 
picturesque  views  to  be  found  in  all  that  Highland  region.  The  river  is 
seen  broken  into  lakes,  in  appearance ;  and  on  all  sides  rise  in  majesty 
the  everlasting  hills.  Only  at  one  point — a  magnificent  vista  between 
Mount  Taurus  and  the  Storm  King — can  the  world  without  be  seen. 
Through  it  a  glimpse  may  be  had  of  the  beautiful  country  around 
Newburgh. 

Below  us  we  could  hear  the  deep  breathing  of  furnaces,  and  the  sullen, 
monotonous  pulsations  of  trip-hammers,  busily  at  work  at  the  "West  Point 
Foundry,  the  most  extensive  and  complete  of  the  iron-works  of  the  United 
States.  Following  a  steep,  stony  ravine  that  forms  the  bed  of  a  water- 
course during  rain-storms,  we  descended  to  these  works,  which  lie  at  the 
head  of  a  marshy  cove,  and  at  the  mouth  of  a  deep  gorge,  through  whicli 
flows  a  clear  mountain  stream  called  Foundry  Creek.  We  crossed  the 
marsh  upon  a  causeway,  and  from  a  rocky  point  of  Constitution  Island 
obtained  a  good  panoramic  view  of  the  establishment.  Returning  to  the 
foundry,  we  followed  a  pleasant  pathway  near  the  bay,  into  a  large  grove 
spared  from  the  original  forest,  in  which  are  situated  the  dwellings  of  a 
former  and  the  present  proprietors  of  the  works.*     One  of  these,  the 


*  The  West  Point  Foundry  was  established  in  1817,  hy  an  as.sociation  organized  :'  jr  the  chief  purpose 
of  manufacturing  heavy  iron  ordnance,  under  a  contract  with  tlie  j^'overnment.  Thiit  yet  formed  a  large 
portion  of  its  business  in  1860.    The  works  then  consisted  of  a  moulding  house;  i  gun  foundry;  three 


THE   HUDSON. 


247 


lionourable  Gouvemeiir  Kemble,  an  intimate  and  life-long  friend  of  Iriring 
and  Paulding,  and  a  former  proprietor,  withdrew  from  active  participation 
in  the  business  of  the  establishment  several  years  ago,  and  is  now 
enjoying  life  there  in  elegant  retirement,  and  dispensing  a  generous 
hospitality.  He  has  a  gallery  of  rare  and  excellent  pictures,  and  a  choice 
library;  and  is  surrounded  by  evidences  of  refined  taste  and  thorough 
cultivation. 

Leaving  the  residence  of  Mr.  Kemble  at  twilight,  we  made  our  way 


WtaX   I'OINI'  iuUM»Kl 


through  the  grove,  and  the  village  of  Cold  Spring  beyond,  to  "TJndercliS'," 
the  summer  dwelling  of  America's  best  lyric  poet,  George  P.  Morris,  who 


cupolas  and  three  air  furnaces ;  two  boi'iiig  mills  :  three  blacksmiths'  shops ;  a  tiip-hammer  weighing 
eight  tons  for  heavy  wrought  iron-work  ;  a  turning  shop ;  a  boiler  shop ;  and  several  other  buildings  used 
for  various  purposes.  The  quantity  of  iron  then  used  varied  with  the  nature  and  demand  of  work.  Upwards 
of  fifty  tons  of  pig  metal  had  been  melted  for  a  single  casting.  The  annual  consumption  varied  from 
5,000  to  10,000  tons,  with  about  1,000  tons  of  boiler-plate  and  WTOught-iron.  The  nimiber  of  hands  then 
employed  was  about  500.  Sometimes  700  men  were  at  work  there.  The  establishment  is  conducted  by 
Robert  P.  Parrott,  Esq.,  formerly  a  captain  of  Ordnance  in  the  United  .States  Army,  and  the  inventor  of 
the  celebrated  "  PaiTott  gun,"  so  extensively  used,  as  among  the  best  of  the  heavj'  ordnance,  during  the 
late  Civil  War.  These,  with  appropriate  projectiles,  were  manufactured  in  great  numbers  at  the  West 
Point  Foundrj',  during  the  war,  from  1861  to  1865. 


248 


THE    HUDSON. 


has  since  been  numbered  with  the  dead.  Broad  Morris  Avenue  leads  to 
a  spacious  iron  gate,  which  opens  into  the  grounds  around  "  TJndercliff." 
From  this,  through  an  avenue  of  stately  trees,  the  house  is  approached. 
It  is  a  substantial  edifice  of  Doric  simplicity  in  style,  perfectly  embowered 
when  the  trees  are  in  full  leaf,  yet  commanding,  through  \'istas,  some 
channing  views  of  the  river  and  the  neighbouring  mountains.  Northward, 
and  near  it,  rises  Mount  Taurus,  with  its  impending  cliff  that  suggested 
the  name  of  the  poet's  country  seat.  It  is  the  old  "Bull  Hill"  which, 
in  Irving's  exquisite  story  of  "  Dolph  Heyliger,"  "bellowed  back  the 


U-NLiKl.LLlir. 


storm  "  whose  thunders  had  "  crashed  on  the  Donder  Berg,  and  rolled  up 
the  long  defile  of  the  Highlands,  each  headland  making  a  new  echo." 

A  late  writer  has  justly  said  of  "  Underclifi^" — "  It  is  a  lovely  spot — 
beautiful  in  itself,  beautiful  in  its  surroundings,  and  inexpressibly 
beautiful  in  the  home  aft'ections  which  hallow  it,  and  the  graceful  and 
genial  hospitality  which,  without  pretence  or  ostentation,  receives  the 
guest,  and  with  lieart  in  the  grasp  of  the  hand,  and  truth  in  the  sparkle 
of  the  eye,  makes  him  feel  that  he  is  welcome."     Over  that  household,  a 


THE    HUDSON,  249 


daughter,  the  '*  fair  and  gentle  Ida,"  celebrated  in  the  following  beautiful 
poem,  presided  for  several  years: — 

"Where  Hudson's  wave  o'er  silvery  sands 

Winds  through  Uie  hills  afar. 
Old  Cro'  Nest  like  a  monarch  stands. 

Crowned  with  a  single  star  ! 
And  there,  amid  Uie  billowy  swells 

Of  rock-ribhed,  cloud-capped  earth, 
My  fair  and  gentle  Ida  dwells, 

A  nymph  of  mountain  birth. 

"  The  snow  flake  that  tlie  cliff  receives, 

The  diamond  of  the  showers, 
Spring's  tender  blossoms,  buds,  and  leaves. 

The  sisterhood  of  flowei*s, 
Moras  early  beam,  eve's  balmy  breeze, 

Her  purity  define ; 
Yet  Ida's  dearer  far  than  these 

To  this  fond  breast  of  mine. 

"My  heart  is  on  the  hills.    The  shades 

Of  night  are  on  my  brow : 
Te  pleasant  haunts  and  quiet  glades. 

My  soul  is  with  you  now ! 
I  bless  the  star-crovmed  Highlands,  where 

My  Ida's  footsteps  roam : 
Oh  for  a  falcon's  wing  to  bear 

Me  onwaid  to  my  home !  " 

Between  Cold  Spring  and  AYest  Point  lies  a  huge  rocky  island,  now 
connected  to  the  main  by  a  reedy  marsh  already  referred  to.  It  was 
called  by  the  Dutch  navigators  Martelaer's  Island,  and  the  reach  in  the 
river  between  it  and  the  Storm  King,  Martelaer's  Rack,  or  Martyr's 
Eeach.  The  word  martyr  was  used  in  this  connection  to  signify  €07itending 
and  struggling,  as  vessels  coming  up  the  river  with  a  fair  wind  would 
frequently  find  themselves,  immediately  after  passing  the  point  of  the 
island  into  this  reach,  struggling  with  the  wind  right  ahead. 

The  Americans  fortified  this  island  very  early  in  the  old  war  for  inde- 
pendence. The  chief  military  work  was  called  Port  Constitution,  and 
the  island  has  ever  since  been  known  as  Constitution  Island.  It  contains 
very  little  arable  land,  and  is  chiefly  composed  of  rugged  rocky  heights, 
every  one  of  which  now  bears  the  ruins  of  the  old  military  works.  To  its 
shore  nearest  approaching  "West  Point  the  Great  Chain,  which  we  have 
already  considered,  was  fastened  ;  and  upon  a  high  bluff  near  (delineated 


^50 


THE    HUDSON. 


in  the  sketch)  are  yet  seen  the  remains  of  a  heavy  buttery — a  part  of  Fort 
Constitution — placed  there  to  protect  the  river  obstructions. 

At  the  time  of  my  visit,  Constitution  Island  belonged  to  Henry 
Warner,  Esq.,  the  father  of  the  gifted  and  popular  writers,  Susan  and 
Anna  B.  "Warner.*  They  resided  in  a  pleasant  cottage,  near  the  southern 
border  of  the  island.  Its  kitchen  was  one  of  the  barracks  of  Fort  Consti- 
tution. It  fronted  upon  a  beautiful  lawn  that  slopes  to  the  river,  and 
was  sheltered  by  evergreen  and  deciduous  trees,  and  beautified  by  flowers 


BUIXS  OF  BATIHKV   OS  COXSllTUTIOX  ISLAKl). 


and  shrubbery.  Although  within  the  sound  of  every  paddle  upon  the 
river,  every  beat  of  the  drum  or  note  of  the  bugle  at  "West  Point,  every 
roll  and  its  echo  of  trains  upon  the  railway,  "Wood  Crag,"  as  their 
secluded  residence  was  called,  was  almost  as  retired  from  the  bustling 


*  " Miss  Susan  Warner,"  says  Duyckinck,  in  the  "CyclopEedia  of  American  Literature,"  "made  a 
sudden  step  into  eminence  as  a  wiiter,  by  tlie  publication,  in  1849,  of  '  Tlie  Wide,  Wide  World,'  a  novel 
in  two  volumes."  Her  second  novel  was  "  Queecby.''  She  is  also  the  author  of  a  theological  work 
entitled  "  The  Law  aud  the  Testimony."  Her  sister  is  the  author  of  "  Dollars  and  Cents,"  a  novel ;  and 
several  veiy  pleasmg  volumes  for  young  people.  "  The  Hills  of  the  Shatemuc,"  a  tale  of  the  Highlands, 
is  the  joint  production  of  these  gifted  sisters. 


THE   HUDSON. 


251 


world  as  if  it  was  in  the  deep  wilderness  of  the  Upper  Hudson.     It  is  a 
charming  home  for  a  child  of  genius. 

On  a  pleasant  morning  in  October,  while  the  trees  were  yet  in  full  leaf 
and  brilliant  with  the  autumnal  tints,  we  went  from  our  home  to  Garrison's 
station  on  the  Hudson  Eivcr  Railway,  and  crossed  to  Cozzens's,  a  summer 
hotel  in  the  Highlands,  about  a  mile  below  "West  Point.  It  was  situated 
near  the  brow  of  a  cliff  on  the  western  shore  of  the  river,  about  180  feet 
above  tide  water,  and  afforded  a  most  delightful  home,  during  the  heat  of 


VIEW  AT   GARRISOK'S. 


summer,  to  numerous  guests,  varying  in  number  from  two  hundred  and 
fifty  to  five  hundred.  There,  ever  since  the  house  was  opened  for  guests 
in  1849,  Lieutenant-General  Scott,  the  General-in-Chief  of  the  American 
army,  had  made  his  head-quarters  during  the  four  or  five  warmer  months 
of  the  year.  It  was  a  place  of  fashionable  resort  from  June  until  October, 
and  at  times  was  overflowing  with  guests,  who  filled  the  mansion  and  the 
several  cottages  attached  to  it.  Among  the  latter  was  the  studio  of 
Leutze,  the  historical  painter.  Only  a  few  days  before  our  visit,  it  had 
been  the  scene  of  great  festivity  on  the  occasion  of  the  reception  of  the 


252 


THE   HUDSON. 


Prince  of  "Wales  and  his  suite,  who  spent  a  day  and  a  night  there,  and  ut 
West  Point,  enjoying  the  unrivalled  mountain  and  river  scenery  that 
surround  them. 

The  pleasure-grounds  around  Cozzens's  were  extensive,  and  were 
becoming  more  beautiful  every  year.  They  had  been  redeemed  from  the 
wilderness  state,  by  labour,  within  ten  years.  "Wo  remember  passing 
through  that  region  before  the  hand  of  man  was  put  forth  for  its  redemp- 


tion, and  seeing  the  huge  boulders — the  "wandering  rocks"  of  the 
geologist — strewn  over  the  surface  of  the  earth  like  apples  beneath 
fruitful  trees  after  an  autumn  storm.  The  change  that  had  been  wrought 
was  marvellous.  Another  was  about  to  take  place.  A  few  weeks  after 
the  visit  here  mentioned,  tliat  fine  building  delineated  in  the  picture  was 
destroyed  by  fire.  The  writer  was  passing  by,  in  the  evening,  on  the 
railway  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  river,  with  a  copy  of  the  London  Art 


mk^^ 


.^ 


esa? 


THE    HUDSON. 


-'rouC 


253 


Journal  in  which  thess  sketches  -were  first  published,  containing  this 
picture,  while  the  building  was  in  flames.  Mr.  Cozzens  soon  erected  a 
more  spacious  one  on  the  high  rocky  bluff  overlooking  Buttermilk  I'alls, 
a  very  short  distance  from  the  site  of  the  other. 

Between  Cozzens's  and  the  mountains  is  a  small  cruciform  stone  church, 
erected  years  before  the  hotel  was  contemplated,  chiefly  by  the  contribu- 
tion of  Professor  Robert  W.  "Weir,  of  West  Point,  the  eminent  historical 
painter,  and  one  of  the  best  of  men  in  all  the  relations  of  life.  It  is  really 
a  memorial  church,  built  in  commemoration  of  his  two  sainted  children. 


C'HUlieit   OF  THE  IIOLV   IXNOCKNIS. 


and  called  "  The  Church  of  the  Holy  Innocents."  For  this  pious  purpose 
he  devoted  a  portion  of  the  money  which  he  received  from  the  United 
States  Government  for  his  picture  of  '  The  Embarkation  of  the  Pilgrims,' 
now  in  the  Eotunda  of  the  National  Capitol.  Divine  service,  according 
to  the  modified  ritual  of  the  Church  of  England,  is  lield  there  regularly, 
and  the  seats  are  free  to  all  who  choose  to  occupy  them.  "We  trust  our 
friend,  whose  modest  nature  shrinks  from  notoriety,  will  pardon  us  for 
this  revelation  of  his  sacred  deed.  The  world,  which  needs  good 
teachings,  is  entitled  to  the  benefit  of  his  noble  example. 


254 


THE   HUDSON. 


All  about  the  cUffs,  on  the  river  front  of  Cozzens's,  are  •winding  paths, 
some  leading  through  romantic  dells  and  ravines,  or  along  and  across  a 
clear  mountain  stream  that  goes  laughing  in  pretty  cascades  down  the 


THE  ROAD  TO  COZZKNS'S  DOCK. 


steep  shore  to  the  river.  The  main  road,  partly  cut  like  a  sloping  terrace 
in  the  rocks,  is  picturesque  at  every  turn,  but  especially  near  the  landing, 
where  pleasant  glimpses  of  the  river  and  its  water  craft  may  be  seen. 


THE    HUDSON. 


255 


Altogether  Cozzens's  and  its  surroundings  form  one  of  the  most  attractive 
places  on  the  Hudson  to  those  ■who  seek  health  and  pleasure. 

At  Cozzens's  Dock  we  procured  a  waterman,  who  took  us  to  several 
places  of  interest  in  the  vicinity.  The  first  was  Buttermilk  Falls,  half  a 
mile  below,  on  the  same  side  of  the  river.  Here  a  small  stream  comes 
rushing  down  the  rocks  in  cascades  and  foaming  rapids,  falling  more  than 
a  hundred  feet  in  the  course  of  as  many  yards.     The  chief  fall,  where  the 


BUTTERMILK   FALLS 


stream  plunges  into  the  river,  is  over  a  sloping  granite  rock.  It  spreads 
out  into  a  hroad  sheet  of  milk-white  foam,  which  suggested  its  name  to 
the  Dutch  skippers,  and  they  called  it  Boter  Melch  Val — Buttermilk  Fall. 
The  stream  affords  water-power  for  flour-mills  at  the  brink  of  the  river. 
The  fall  is  so  great,  that  by  a  series  of  overshot  water-wheels,  arranged  at 
diti'erent  altitudes,  a  small  quantity  of  water  does  marvellous  execution. 


256 


THE    HUDSON. 


Large  vessels  come  alongside  tliu  elevator  on  the  river  front,  and  there 
discharge  cargoes  of  wlieat  and  take  in  cargoes  of  flour. 

Eude  paths  and  bridges  arc  so  constructed  that  visitors  may  view  the 
great  fall  and  the  cascades  above  from  many  points.  The  latter  have  a 
grand  and  wild  aspect  when  the  stream  is  brimful,  after  heavy  rains  and 
the  melting  of  snows. 


rPPER  CASCADES,  Bl'lTKHMILK   FALL. 

On  the  rough  plain  above  is  the  village  of  Buttermilk  Fall,  containing 
over  three  hundred  inhabitants.  The  country  around  is  exceedingly 
rough  and  picturesque,  especially  in  the  direction  of  Fort  Montgomery, 
three  or  four  miles  below  ;  while  on  the  brow  of  the  high  river  bank  near, 
there  are  some  pleasant  summer  residences.  Among  these  was  the 
dwelling  of  Mr.  Bigelow,  then  the  associate  of  Mr.  Bryant,  the  poet,  in 


THE    HUDSON. 


257 


the  ownci>Lip  and  conduct  of  tlio  New  York  Eieniiig  Pod,  but  since 
appointed,  first  the  Secretary  of  the  American  Legation  at  the  French 
Court,  in  1861,  and  afterward  Minister  Tlcnipotentiary  at  the  same  Court. 
Here  on  the  smooth  faces  of  the  rocks  might  be  seen  a  desecration 
■which  deserves  the  severest  reprobation.  All  through  the  Highlands,  on 
the  line  of  the  Hudson  Eiver  Railway,  the  same  offence  met  the  eye. 
We  refer  to  the  occupation  of  smooth  rocks  by  great  staring  letters, 
announcing  the  fact  that  one  shopkeeper  in  Ifew  York  has  "  Old  London 


Ufc-VERLV   ItOLK. 


Hock  Gin"  for  sale,  and  that  another  sells  "  Paphian  Lotion  for  beauti- 
fying the  Hair."  We  protest,  in  the  name  of  every  person  of  taste  who 
travels  upon  the  river  and  the  road,  against  any  disfiguring  of  the 
picturesque  scenery  of  the  Hudson  Highlands,  by  making  the  out-cropping 
rocks  of  the  grand  old  hills  play  the  part  of  those  itinerants  who  walk  the 
streets  of  New  York  with  enormous  placards  on  their  backs,  advertising 
■wares  for  sale ;  and  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  New  York,  which,  in 
1865,  made  such  disfiguration  a  penal  offence,  deserves  high  praise. 
We  crossed  the  river  from  Buttermilk  Fall  to  the  "  Beverly  Dock," 

L   L 


258 


THE   HUDSON. 


whicli  is  interesting  only  as  the  place  wliere  Arnold,  the  traito*-,  entered 
Ills  barge  in  -n-hicli  he  escaped  to  the  Vulture  sloop-of-war,  on  the  morning 
Avhen  he  fled  from  the  "  Beverly  House,"  the  cause  of  which  wc  have 
already  considered.  Here  he  kept  his  barge  moored,  and  here  ho  embarked 
on  that  flight  which  severed  him  for  ever  from  the  sympathies  of  his 
countrymen — ay,  of  the  world — for  those  Avho  "accepted  the  treason, 
despised  the  traitor."  His  six  oarsmen  on  that  occasion,  unconscious  of 
the  nature  of  the  general's  errand  in  such  hot  haste  down  the  river,  had 
their  muscles  strengthened  by  a  promised  reward  of  two  gallons  of  rum ; 
and  the  barge  glided  with  the  speed  of  the  wind.  They  were  awakened 
to  a  sense  of  their  position  only  when  they  were  detained  on  board  the 
Vulture  as  prisoners,  and  saw  their  chief  greeted  as  a  friend  by  the  enemies 
of  their  country;  They  were  speedily  set  at  liberty,  in  New  York,  by 
Sir  Henry  Clinton,  wlio  scorned  Arnold  for  his  meanness  and  treachery. 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

rowed  to  Garrison's,  where  we  dismissed  the 
waterman,  and  took  the  cars  for  Peek's  Kill,  six 
miles  below,  a  pleasant  village  lying  at  the  river 
opening  of  a  high  and  beautiful  valley,  and  upon 
slopes  that  overlook  a  broad  bay  and  extensive 
mountain  ranges.*  We  passed  the  night  at  the 
house  of  a  friend  (Owen  T.  Coffin,  E.-^q.),  and  from  the  lawn  in 
front  of  his  dwelling,  which  commands  the  finest  view  of  the 
river  and  mountains  in  that  vicinity,  made  the  sketch  of  the 
Lower  Entrance  to  the  Highlands.  On  the  left  is  seen  the  Donder 
Berg,  over  and  behind  which  Sir  Henry  Clinton's  army  marched  to  attack 
Forts  Clinton  and  Montgomery.  On  the  right  is  Anthony's  Xose,  with 
the  site  of  Fort  Independence  between  it  and  Peck's  Kill ;  and  in  the 
centre  is  Bear  Mountain,  at  whose  base  is  the  beautiful  Lake  Sinnipiuk — 
the  "Bloody  Pond"  in  revolutionary  times.  This  view  includes  a 
theatre  of  most  important  historical  events.  We  may  only  glance  at 
them. 

Peek's  Kill,  named  from  the  "Kill  of  Jan  Peek,"  that  flows  into  the 
Hudson  just  above  the  rocky  promontory  on  the  nortli- western  side  of  the 
town,  was  an  American  depot  of  military  stores,  during  the  earlier  years 
of  the  war  for  independence.  These  were  destroyed  and  the  post  burnt 
by  the  British  in  the  spring  of  1777.  There,  during  most  of  the  war, 
was  the  head-quarters  of  important  divisions  of  the  revolutionaiy  army, 
and  there  the  British  spy  was  hanged,  concerning  jvhom  General  Putnam 


»  Peek's  Kill  Village  was  incorporated  in  1817.  It  is  the  most  northerly  place  on  tlie  Hudson  (being 
forty-one  miles  from  New  York),  where  business  men  in  the  metropolis  reside.  It  is  so  sheltered  by 
Uie  Highlands,  tliat  it  is  an  agi-eeable  place  of  residence  in  tbe  winter.  It  contains  ten  chiu'ches, 
excellent  schools,  and  had  a  population  of  about  4,000  in  1860. 


260 


THE   HUDSON. 


wrote  his  famous  laconic  letter  to  Sir  Heniy  Clinton.     The  latter  claimed 
the  ofTendcr  as  a  British  officer,  when  Putnam  wrote  in  reply : — 


■    "  Head-quarters,  1th  August,  1117. 

"  Sir, — Edmund  Palmer,  an  officer  in  the  enemy's  service,  was  taken 
as  a  spy,  lurking  within  our  lines.  He  has  heen  tried  as  a  spy,  condemned 
as  a  spy,  and  shall  he  executed  as  a  spy ;  and  the  flag  is  ordered  to  depart 
immediately. 


"  P.S. — He  has  been  accordingly  executed." 


"IsuAEL  Putnam." 


LO\VEB  ENTRANCE  TO  THE  HIGHLANDS,  FROM   PEEK'S  KILL. 


At  Peek's  Kill  we  procured  a  waterman,  whose  father,  then  eighty-five 
years  of  age,  conveyed  the  writer  across  the  King's  Ferry,  four  or  five 
miles  below,  twelve  yfears  before.  The  morning  was  cool,  and  a  stiff 
breeze  was  blowing  from  the  north.  We  crossed  the  bay,  and  entered 
Fort  Montgomery  Creek  (anciently  Poplopen's  Kill)  between  the  two 
rocky  promontories  on  which  stood  Forts  Clinton  and  Montgomery,  within 
rifle-shot  of  each  other.    The  banks  of  the  creek  are  high  and  precipitous, 


THE   HUDSON. 


261 


the  southern  one  covered  with  trees  ;  and  less  than  half  a  mile  from  its 
broad  and  deep  mouth,  in  which  large  vessels  may  anchor,  it  is  a  wild 
mountain  stream,  rushing  into  the  placid  tide-water  through  narrow 
valleys  and  dark  ravines.     Here,  at  the  foot  of  a  wild  cascade,  we  moored 


FALLS  IN  FORT  MONTGOMEEV  CBEEK. 


our  little  boat,  and  sketched  the  scene.  A  short  dam  has  been  constructed 
there  for  sending  water  through  a  flume  to  a  mill  a  few  rods  below. 
This  stream,  like  Indian  Brook,  presents  a  thousand  charming  pictures, 
where  nature  woos  her  lovers  in  the  pleasant  summer-time. 


26S 


THE   HUDSON. 


From  the  mill  may  be  oLtalncd  a  view  of  the  promontories  on  each  side 
of  the  crock,  and  of  the  lofty  Anthony's  Nose  on  the  eastern  side  of  the 
river,  which  appears  in  our  slictch,  dark  and  imposing,  as  we  look  toward 
the  east.  Fort  Slontgomcry  was  on  the  northern  side  of  the  creek,  and 
Fort  Clinton  on  the  southern  side.  They  were  constructed  at  the 
beginning  of  the  war  for  independence,  and  became  the  theatre  of  a 
desperate  and  bloody  contest  in  the  autumn  of  1777.  They  were  strong 
fortresses,  though  feebly  manned.  From  Fort  Montgomery  to  Anthony's 
Nose  a  heavy  boom  and  massive  iron  chain  were  stretched  over  the  liver. 


SCENE   IN  FOKT  MONTGOMEEY   CEKIiK. 

to  obstruct  British  ships  that  might  attempt  a  passage  toward  West  Point. 
The  two  forts  were  respectively  commanded  by  two  brothers,  Generals 
George  and  James  Clinton,  the  former  at  that  time  governor  of  the 
newly  organised  State  of  New  York. 

Burgoyne,  then  surrounded  by  the  Americans  at  Saratoga,  was,  as  wc 
have  observed  in  a  former  chapter,  in  daily  expectation  of  a  diversion  in 
liis  favoui',  on  the  Lower  Hudson,  by  Sir  Henry  Clinton — in  command  of 
the  British  troops  at  New  York.     Early  in  October,  the  latter  fitted  out 


THE   HODSON. 


263 


an  expedition  for  the  Highlands,  and  accompanied  it  in  person.  He 
deceived  General  Putnam,  then  iu  command  at  Peek's  Kill,  by  feints  on 
that  side  of  the  river,  at  the  same  time  he  sent  detachments  over  the 
Bonder  Berg,  under  cover  of  a  fog.  They  were  piloted  by  a  resident 
Tory  or  loyalist,  and  in  the  afternoon  of  the  6tli  of  October,  and  in  two 
divisions,  fell  upon  the  forts.  The  commanders  of  the  forts  had  no 
suspicions  of  the  proximity  of  the  enemy  until  their  picket  guards  were 


LAKE  SINNIPINK. 


assailed.  These,  and  a  detachment  sent  out  in  that  direction,  had  a 
severe  skirmish  with  the  invaders  on  the  borders  of  Lake  Sinnipink,  a 
beautiful  sheet  of  water  lying  at  the  foot  of  the  lofty  Bear  Mountain,  on 
the  same  general  level  as  the  foundations  of  the  fort.  Many  of  the  dead 
were  cast  into  that  lake,  near  its  outlet,  and  their  blood  so  incarnadined 
its  waters,  that  it  has  ever  since  been  vulgarly  called  "Bloody  Pond." 
The  garrisons  at  the  two  forts,  meanwhile,  prepared  to  resist  the  attack 


264 


THE    HUDSON. 


■with  desperation.  They  ■were  completely  invested  at  four  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon,  when  a  general  contest  commenced,  in  ■which  British  vessels  in 
the  river  participated.  It  continued  until  t-^vilight.  The  Americans 
then  gave  ■way,  and  a  general  flight  ensued.  The  two  commanders  were 
among  those  -who  escaped  to  the  mountains.  .  The  Americans  lost  in 
killed,  ■wounded,  and  prisoners,  about  three  hundred.  The  Eritish  loss 
was  about  one  hundred  and  forty. 

The  contest  ended  ■with  a  sublime  spectacle.  Above  the  boom  and 
chain  the  Americans  had  t^wo  frigates,  two  galleys,  and  an  armed  sloop. 
On  the  fall  of  the  forts,  the  cre^ws  of  these  vessels  spread  their  sails,  and, 
slipping  their  cables,  attempted  to  escape  up  the  river.  But  the  ■wind 
■was  adverse,  and  they  ■were  compelled  to  abandon  them.  They  set  them 
on  fire  -when  they  left,  to  prevent  their  falling  into  the  hands  of  an 
enemy.  "  The  flames  suddenly  broke  forth,"  ■wrote  Stedman,  a  British 
officer  and  author,  "  and,  as  every  sail  was  set,  the  vessels  soon  became 
magnificent  pyramids  of  fire.  The  reflection  on  the  steep  face  of  the 
opposite  mountain  (Anthony's  Nose),  and  the  long  train  of  ruddy  light 
which  shone  upon  the  water  for  a  prodigious  distance,  had  a  wonderful 
effect ;  while  the  ear  was  awfully  filled  with  the  continued  echoes  from 
the  rocky  shores,  as  the  flames  gradually  reached  the  loaded  cannons. 
The  whole  was  sublimely  terminated  by  the  explosions,  which  left  all 
again  in  darkness." 

Early  on  the  following  morning,  the  obstructions  in  the  river,  which 
had  cost  the  Americans  a  quarter  of  a  million  of  dollars,  continental 
money,  were  destroyed  by  the  British  fleet.  Fort  Constitution,  opposite 
West  Point,  was  abandoned.  A  free  passage  of  the  Hudson  being  opened, 
Vaughan  and  Wallace  sailed  up  the  river  on  their  destructive  errand  to 
Kingston  and  Clermont,  already  mentioned. 

A  short  distance  below  Montgomery  Creek,  at  the  mouth  of  Lake 
Sinnipink  Brook,  is  one  of  the  depots  of  the  Knickerbocker  Ice  Company, 
of  New  York.  The  spacious  storehouses  for  the  ice  are  on  the  rocky 
bank,  thirty  or  forty  feet  above  the  river.  The  ice,  cut  in  blocks  from 
the  lake  above  in  winter,  is  sent  down  upon  wooden  "  ways,"  that  wind 
through  the  forest  with  a  gentle  inclination,  from  the  outlet  of  Sinnipink, 
for  nearly  half  a  mile.     A  portion  of  the  "  ways,"  from  the  storehouses 


THE   HUDSON. 


265 


to  the  forwarding  depot  below,  is  seen  in  our  sketch.  From  that  depot 
the  ice  is  conveyed  into  vessels  in  warm  weather,  and  carried  to  market. 
Jlore  than  thirty  thousand  tons  of  ice  are  annually  shipped  from,  this 
single  depot.  Ice  is  an  important  article  of  tlie  commerce  of  the  Hudson, 
from  whose  surface,  also,  immense  quantities  are  gathered  every  winter. 

From  the  high  hank  above  the  ice  depot,  a  very  fine  view  of  Anthony's 
Nose  and  the  Sugar  Loaf  in  the  distance  may  he  obtained.  The  latter  name 
the  reader  will  remember  as  that  of  the  loftv  eminence  in  the  rear  of  the 


ASTHOXl  S  KOSE  ANU  THE   SUGAIi  LOAF,  lliO.M  THE  luE  DEPuT. 


Beverly  House.  At  "West  Point  and  its  vicinity  it  forms  a  long  range  of 
mountains,  but  looking  up  from  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Nose,  it  is  a 
perfect  pyramid  in  form.  It  is  one  of  the  first  objects  that  attract  the 
eye  of  the  voyager,  when  turning  the  point  of  the  Nose  on  entering  the 
Highlands  from  below.  Its  form  suggested  to  the  practical  minds  of  the 
Dutch  a  Sui/cker  Broodt — Sugar  Loaf — and  so  they  named  it. 

M    SI 


266 


THE    HUDSON. 


"We  crossed  the  river  from  Lake  Sinnipink  to  Anthony's  Nose,  through 
the  point  of  which  the  Hudson  River  Eaihvay  passes,  iu  a  tunnel  over 
tv,-o  hundred  feet  in  length.  This  is  a  lofty  rocky  promontory,  whoso 
summit  is  almost  thirteen  hundred  feet  above  the  river,  and  with  the 
jutting  point  of  the  Bonder  Eerg,  a  mile  and  a  half  below,  gives  the 
Hudson  there  a  double  curve,  and  the  appearance  of  an  arm  of  the  sea, 
terminating  at  tlio  mountains.  Such  was  the  opinion  of  Hendrick 
Hudson,  as  he  approached  this  point  from  below.     The  true  origin  of  the 


TUMXEL   AT  ANTIIOM  a  KOSE. 


name   of  this   promontory   is   unknown.     Irving   makes   the   veracious 
historian,  Diedrich  Knickerbocker,  throw  light  upon  the  subject : — 

"  And  now  I  am  going  to  tell  a  fact,  which  I  doubt  much  my  readers 
will  hesitate  to  believe,  but  if  they  do  they  are  welcome  not  to  believe  a 
word  in  this  whole  history — for  nothing  which  it  contains  is  more  true. 
It  must  be  known  then  that  the  nose  of  Anthony  the  trumpeter  was  of  a 
very  lusty  size,  strutting  boldly  from  his  countenance  like  a  mountain  of 
Golconda,  being  sumptuously  bedecked  Avith  rubies  and  other  precious 


TUE    HUDSON.  267 


stones — the  true  regalia  of  a  king  of  good  fellon's,  which  jolly  Bacchus 
grants  to  all  who  house  it  heartily  at  the  flagon.  Now  thus  it  happened, 
that  hright  and  early  in  the  morning,  the  good  Anthony,  having  washed 
his  burly  visage,  was  leaning  over  the  quarter  railing  of  the  galley, 
contemplating  it  in  the  glassy  wave  below.  Just  at  this  moment  the 
illustrious  sun,  breaking  in  all  his  splendour  from  behind  a  high  bluff  of 
the  Highlands,  did  dart  one  of  his  most  potent  beams  full  upon  the 
refulgent  nose  of  the  sounder  of  brass — the  reflection  of  which  shot 
straightway  down  hissing  hot  into  the  water,  and  killed  a  mighty 
sturgeon  tliat  was  sporting  beside  the  vessel.  This  huge  monster,  being 
with  infinite  labour  hoisted  on  board,  furnished  a  luxurious  repast  to  all 
the  crew,  being  accounted  of  excellent  flavour  excepting  about  the  wound, 
where  it  smacked  a  little  of  brimstone — and  this,  on  my  veracity,  was  tlie 
first  time  that  ever  sturgeon  was  eaten  in  these  parts  by  Christian 
people.  When  this  astonishing  miracle  became  known  to  Peter  Stuy- 
vesaut,  and  that  he  tasted  of  the  unknown  fish,  he,  as  may  well  bo 
supposed,  marvelled  exceedingly ;  and  as  a  monument  thereof,  he  gave 
the  name  of  Anthony's  Nose  to  a  stout  promontory  in  the  neighbourhood, 
and  it  has  continued  to  be  called  Anthony's  Nose  ever  since  that  time." 

Down  the  steep  rocky  valley  between  Anthony's  Nose  and  a  summit 
almost  as  lofty  half  a  mile  below,  one  of  the  wildest  streams  of  this 
region  flows  in  gentle  cascades  in  dry  weather,  but  as  a  rushing  torrent 
during  rain-storms  or  the  time  of  the  melting  of  the  snows  in  spring. 
The  Dutch  called  it  Broclcen  lull,  or  Broken  Creek,  it  being  seen  in 
"bits"  as  it  finds  its  way  among  the  rocks  and  shrubbery  to  the  river. 
The  name  is  now  corrupted  to  Brockcy  Kill.  It  is  extremely  picturesque 
from  every  point  of  view,  especially  when  seen  glittering  in  the  evening 
sun.  It  conies  from  a  wild  wet  region  among  the  hills,  where  the 
Eattlesnake,*  the   most  venomous  serpent  of  the  American   continent, 


*  The  Crotuhis  diirissus,  or  common  northern  Rattlesnake  of  the  United  States,  is  of  a  yellowish  or 
reddish  brown,  sometimes  of  a  chestnut  black,  with  irregular  rhomboidal  black  blotches ;  head  large, 
flattened,  and  triangular ;  length  from  three  to  seven  or  eight  feet.  On  the  tail  is  a  rattle,  consisting  of 
several  horny  enlargements,  loosely  attached  to  each  other,  luaking  a  lond  rattling  sound  when  shaken 
and  rubbed  against  each  other.  These  are  used  by  tlie  serpent  to  give  warning  of  its  presence.  When 
disturbed,  it  throws  itself  into  a  coil,  vibrates  its  rattles,  and  then  springing,  sometimes  four  or  five  feet, 
ftses  its  deadly  fangs  in  its  victim.     It  feetis  on  birds,  rabbits,  squirrels,  &c. 


268 


THE    HUDSON. 


abounds.  They  are  found  in  all  parts  of  the  Highlands,  but  in  far  less 
abundance  than  formerly.  Indeed  they  arc  now  so  seldom  seen,  that  the 
tourist  need  have  no  dread  of  them. 


THE  BEOCKEX  KILL. 


A  little  below  the  Brocken  Kill,  at  Flat  Point,  is  one  of  those  tunnels 
and  deep  rock  cuttings  so  frequently  passed  along  the  entire  line  of  the 
Hudson  Ilivcr  llaihvay  ;  and  iu  the  river  opposite  is  a  picturesque  island 


THK   HUDSON. 


269 


called  lonn,  containing  about  300  acres  of  land,  including  a  marsh  meadow 
of  200  acres.  Only  about  forty  acres  of  tlio  island  proper,  besides,  is 
capable  of  tillage.  It  lies  -within  the  triangle  formed  by  the  Dondcr 
Ecrg,  Anthony's  Nose,  and  Bear  Mountain.  There  we  spent  an  hour 
pleasantly  and  profitably  with  the  proprietor,  C.  W.  Grant,  M.D.,  who 
resided  there,  and  was  extensively  engaged  in  the  propagation  of  grape- 
vines and  choice  fruit-trees.  He  had  a  vineyard  of  twenty  acres,  from 
2,000  to  3,000  bearing  pear-trees,  and  small  fruit  of  every  kind.     He  had 


RATTLES.VylKK. 


eleven  propagation  houses,  and  produced  more  grape  and  other  fruit-plants 
than  all  other  establishments  in  the  United  States  combined. 

lona  is  upon  the  dividing  line  of  temperature.  The  sea  breeze  stops 
here,  and  its  effects  are  visible  upon  vegetation.  The  season  is  two  weeks 
earlier  than  at  Newburgh,  only  fourteen  miles  northward,  above  the 
Highlands.  It  is  at  the  lower  entrance  to  this  mountain  range.  The 
width  of  the  river  between  it  and  Anthony's  Nose  is  only  three-eighths  of 
a  mile — less  than  at  any  other  point  below  Albany.  The  water  is  deep, 
and  the  tidal  currents  are  so  swift,  that  this  part  of  the  river  is  called 
"  The  Eace." 


270 


THE    HUDSON. 


Southward  from  lona,  on  the  western  shore  of  the  river,  rises  the 
roeky  Bonder  Berg,  or  Thunder  Mountain,  whore,  in  summer,  the  tempest 
is  often  seen  brooding.  "The  captains  of  the  river  craft,"  says  Irving, 
in  his  legend  of ''The  Storm-Ship,"  "talk  of  a  little  hnlbous-bottomed 
Dutch  goblin,  in  trunk  hose  and  sugar-loafed  hat,  with  a  speaking-trumpet 
in  his  hand,  which,  they  say,  keeps  the  Donder  Berg.  They  declare  that 
they  have  heard  him,  in  stormy  weather,  in  the  midst  of  the  turmoil. 


■nUNEI.  AT   IXAT  I'OINT. 


giving  orders  in  Low  Dutch,  for  the  piping  up  of  a  fresh  gust  of  'wind,  or 
the  rattling  off  of  another  thunder-clap.  That  sometimes  he  has  been  seen 
surrounded  by  a  crow  of  little  imps,  in  broad  breeches  and  short  doublets, 
tumbling  head  over  heels  in  tlio  rack  and  mist,  and  playing  a  thousand 
gambols  in  the  air,  or  buzzing  like  a  swarm  of  flics  about  Anthony's  Nose; 
and  that,  at  such  times,  the  hurry-scurry  of  the  storm  was  always  greatest. 
One  time  a  sloop,  in  passing  by  the  Donder  .Berg,  was  overtaken  by  a 


THE   HUDSON. 


271 


tlmnder-gust,  that  camo  scouriug  round  the  mountain,  and  seemed  to 
burst  just  over  the  vessel.  Though  tight  and  well  ballasted,  she  laboured 
ch'eadfull}-,  and  the  water  camo  over  the  gunwale.  All  the  crew  were 
amazed,  when  it  was  discovered  that  there  was  a  little  white  sugar-loaf 
hat  on  the  mast-head,  known  at  once  to  be  the  hat  of  the  Heer  of  the 
Bonder  Berg.  Nobody,  however,  dared  to  climb  to  the  mast-head,  and 
get  rid  of  this  terrible  hat.     The  sloop  continued  labouring  and  rocking, 


lOX.l,   FROM  THE   KAILIVAV. 


as  if  she  would  have  rolled  her  mast  overboard,  and  seemed  in  continual 
danger,  either  of  upsetting,  or  of  running  on  shore.  In  this  way  she 
drove  quite  through  the  Highlands,  until  she  had  passed  Pollopel's  Island, 
where,  it  is  said,  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Bonder  Berg  potentate  ceases. 
No  sooner  had  she  passed  this  bourne,  thau  the  little  hat  sprung  up  into 
the  air  like  a  top,  whirled  up  all  the  clouds  into  a  vortex,  and  hurried 
them  back  to  the  summit  of  the  Bonder  Berg,  while  the  sloop  righted 


THE    HUDSON. 


herself,  and  sailed  on  as  qiiictly  as  if  in  a  mill-pond.  Nothing  saved  her 
from  utter  wreck  but  the  fortuuate  circumstance  of  having  a  horse-shoe 
nailed  against  the  mast — a  wise  precaution  against  evil  spirits,  since 
adopted  by  all  the  Dutch  captains  that  navigate  this  haunted  river. 

"There  is  another  story  told  of  this  foul-weather  urchin,  by  Skipper 
Daniel  Ouslesticker,  of  Fish  Kill,  who  was  never  known  to  tell  a  lie. 
He  declared  that,  in  a  severe  squall,  he  saw  him  seated  astride  of  his 
bowsprit,  riding  the  sloop  ashore,  full  butt  against  Anthony's  Nose,  and 
that  he  was  exorcised  by  Dominic  Van  Geisen,  of  Esopus,  who  happened 
to  he  on  board,  and  who  sang  the  hymn  of  St.  Nicholas,  whereupon  the 
goblin  threw  himself  up  in  the  air  like  a  ball,  and  went  off  in  a  whirlwind, 
carrying  away  with  him  the  nightcap  of  the  Dominic's  wife,  which  was 
discovered  the  next  Sunday  morning  hanging  on  the  weather-cock  of 
Esopus  church  steeple,  at  least  forty  miles  off.  Several  events  of  this 
kind  having  taken  place,  the  regular  skippers  of  the  river  for  a  long  time 
did  not  venture  to  pass  the  Donder  Berg  without  lowering  their  peaks, 
out  of  homage  to  the  Heer  of  the  Mountains ;  and  it  was  observed  that 
all  such  as  paid  this  tribute  of  respect  were  suffered  to  pass  unmolested." 

"VVe  have  observed  that  the  tempest  is  often  seen  brooding  upon  the 
Donder  Eerg  in  summer.  We  give  a  sketch  of  one  of  those  scenes,  drawn 
by  the  writer  several  years  ago,  when  the  steam-engine  of  an  immense 
pumping  apparatus  was  in  operation  at  Doudcr  Berg  Point.  Concerning 
that  engine  and  its  co-workers,  there  is  a  curious  tale  of  mingled  fraud, 
superstition,  credulity,  and  "gullibility,"  that  vies  with  many  a  plot 
born  in  the  romancer's  brain.  It  cannot  bo  told  here.  The  simple  out- 
lines are,  that  some  years  ago  an  iron  cannon  was,  by  accident,  brought 
up  from  the  river  depths  at  this  point.  Some  speculatoi',  as  the  story 
goes,  at  once  conceived  a  scheme  of  fraud,  for  the  success  of  which  he 
relied  on  the  average  ignorance  and  credulity  of  mankind.  It  was  boldly 
proclaimed,  in  the  face  of  recorded  history,  that  Captain  Kidd's  piratical 
vessel  was  sunken  in  a  storm  at  this  spot  with  untold  treasui'es  on  board, 
and  that  one  of  his  cannons  had  been  raised.  Further,  that  the  deck  of 
liis  vessel  had  been  penetrated  by  a  very  long  augur,  hard  substances 
encountered  by  it,  and  pieces  of  silver  brought  wp  in  its  thread — the 
evidence  of  coffers  of  specie  below.     This  augur  with  its  bits  of  silver  was 


THE   HUDSON. 


273 


exhibited,  and  the  story  believed.  A  stock  company  was  formed.  Shares 
were  readily  taken.  The  speculator  was  chief  manager.  A  coffer  dam 
was  made  over  the  supposed  resting-place  of  the  treasure-ship.  A  steam- 
engine  and  huge  pumps,  driven  by  it,  were  set  in  motion.  Day  after  day, 
and  month  after  month,  the  work  went  on.  One  credulous  New  York 
merchant  invested  20,000  dollars  in  the  scheme.  The  speculator  took 
large  commissions.     Hope  failed,  the  work  stopped,   and  nothing  now 


PONDEK  BKKti  POINT. 


remains  to  tell  the  tale  but  the  ruins  of  the  coffer  dam  and  the  remains  of 
the  pumps,  which  may  be  seen  almost  on  a  level  with  the  surface  of  the 
river,  at  high  water. 

The  true  history  of  the  cannon  found  there  is,  probably,  that  it  is  one 
of  several  captured  by  the  Americans  at  Stony  Point,  just  below,  in  1779. 
They  attempted  to  carry  the  cannon  on  galleys  (flat  boats)  to  "West  Point. 
According  to  the  narrative  of  a  British  ofiicer  present,  a  shot  from  the 

N    N" 


274 


THE   HUDSON. 


ViiUure  sloop-of-war  sunk  one  of  the  boats  off  Dondcv  Berg  Point.  This 
cannon,  probably,  went  to  the  bottom  of  the  river  at  that  time.  And  so 
vanishes  the  right  of  any  of  Kidd's  descendants  to  that  old  cannon. 

A  few  weeks  after  my  visit  to  the  Bonder  Berg  and  its  vicinity,  I  was 
again  at  Peek's  Kill,  and  upon  its  broad  and  beautiful  bay.  But  a  great 
change  had  taken  place  in  the  aspect  of  the  scene.  The  sober  foliage  of 
late  autumn  had  fallen,  and  where  lately  the  most  gorgeous  colours  clothed 
the  lofty  hills  in  indescribable  beauty,  nothing  but  bare  stems  and 
branches,  and  grey  rugged  rocks,  were  seen,  shrouded  in  the  snow  that 
covered  hill  and  valley,  mountain  and  plain.  The  river  presented  a 
smooth  surface  of  strong  ice,  and  winter,  with  all  its  rigours,  was  holding 
supreme  rule  in  the  realm  of  nature  without. 

It  was  evening  when  I  arrived  at  Peek's  Kill — a  cold,  serene,  moon- 
light evening.  Muffled  in  a  thick  cloak,  and  with  hands  covered  by  stout 
woollen  gloves,  I  sallied  out  to  transfer  to  paper  and  fix  in  memory  the 
scene  upon  Peek's  Kill  (or  Peek's  Kill  Creek,  as  it  is  erroneously  written), 
of  which  I  had  obtained  a  glimpse  from  the  window  of  the  railway-car. 
The  frost  bit  sharply,  and  cold  keen  gusts  of  wind  came  sweeping  from 
the  Highlands,  while  I  stood  upon  the  causeway  at  the  drawbridge  at  the 
mouth  of  Peek's  Kill,  and  made  my  evening  sketch.*  All  was  cold, 
silent,  glittering,  and  solitary,  except  a  group  of  young  skaters,  gliding 
spectre-like  in  the  crisp  night  air,  their  merry  laughter  ringing  out  clear 
and  loud  when  one  of  the  party  was  made  to  "see  stars" — not  in  the 
black  arch  above — as  his  head  took  the  place  of  his  heels  upon  the  ice. 
The  form  of  an  iron  furnace,  in  deep  shadow,  on  the  southern  side  of  the 
creek,  was  the  only  token  of  human  labour  to  be  seen  in  the  view,  except 
the  cabin  of  the  drawbridge  keeper  at  my  side. 

A  little  north  of  Peek's  Kill  Hollow,  as  the  valley  is  called  by  the 
inhabitants,  is  another,  lying  at  tho  bases  of  the  rugged  Highlands,  called 
the  Canopus  Hollow.  It  is  a  deep,  rich,  and  interesting  valley,  through 
which  flows  the  Canopus  Creek.    In  its  bosom  is  pleasant  little  Continental 


»  This  railway-bridge  and  causeway  is  called  Cortlandt  Bridge.  It  is  1,496  feet  in  leflglh.  At  its 
north-western  end  is  a  gravelly  hill,  on  which  stood  a  battery,  called  Fort  Independence,  during  the 
Revolution.    The  Indians  called  the  Peek's  Kill  Mag-ri-gn-rics,  and  its  vicinity  Snck-lioes. 


THE   HUDSON. 


275 


Village,  so  named  in  the  time  of  the  Eevolution  because  the  hamlet  there 
was  made  a  depot  for  Continental  or  Government  cattle  and  stores.  These 
were  destroyed,  three  days  after  the  capture  of  Forts  Clinton  and  Mont- 
gomery, by  Governor  Tyron,  at  the  head  of  a  band  of  German  mer- 
cenaries known  as  Hessians,  because  a  larger  x^ortion  of  the  German 
troops,  hired  by  the  British  Government  to  assist  in  crushing  the  rebellion 
in  America,  were  furnished  by  the  Prince  of  Hesso  Cassel.     Tiyon,  who 


THE  PEEK'S   KILL. 


had  been  governor  of  the  colony  of  New  York,  and  was  now  a  brigadier 
in  the  royal  army,  hated  the  Americans  intensely.  He  really  seemed  to 
delight  in  expeditions  of  this  kind,  having  almost  destroyed  Danbury,  in 
Connecticut,  and  East  Haven,  Fairfield,  and  Korwalk,  on  the  borders  of 
Long  Island  Sound,  in  the  same  State.  Now,  after  destroying  the  public 
stores  and  slaughtering  many  cattle,  he  set  fire  to  almost  every  house  in 
the  village.     In  allusion  to  this,  and  the  devastations  on  the  Hudson, 


270 


THE    HUDSON. 


above   the  Highlands,    by   General  Vaughan,   Trumbull,    an   American 
contemporary  poet,  wrote  indignantly  : — 


"Behold,  like  wheli's  of  Britjiin's  Hon, 
Our  warriors,  Clinton,  Vaii^lian,  and  Tryon,  , 
March  forth  wilh  patriotic  joy 
To  ravish,  plunder,  and  destroy. 
Great  gen'rals!  foremost  in  theii*  nation, 
The  joumej-nien  of  desolation, 
Like  Samson's  foxes,  each  assails, 
Let  loose  with  fire-brands  in  their  tails. 
And  spreads  destruction  more  forlorn 
Than  they  among  Philistine  corn." 


It  is  proper  to  observe  that  Tryon^s  marauding  expeditions  were  con- 


SKAIERS    Oy   peek's   RILL   BAY. 


demncd  by  the  British   public,  and  the  ministry  were  censured  by  the 
opposition  in  parliament  for  permitting  such  conduct  to  pass  unrebuked. 

On  the  following  morning,  when  the  sun  had  climbed  high  towards 
meridian,  I  left  Peek's  Kill  for  a  day's  sketching  and  observation  in  the 


THE   HUDSON. 


277 


winter  air.  The  bay  was  alive  with  people  of  all  ages,  sexes,  and  condi- 
tions. It  was  the  first  day  since  a  late  snow-storm  that  the  river  had 
offered  good  sport  for  skaters,  and  the  navigators  of  ice-boats.*  It  was  a 
gay  scene.  "Wrapped  in  furs  and  shawls,  over-coats  and  cloaks,  men  and 
women,  boys  and  girls,  were  enjoying  the  rare  exercise  with  the  greatest 
pleasure.  Pun,  pure  fun,  ruled  the  hour.  The  air  was  vocal  with  shouts 
and  laughter ;  and  when  the  swift  ice-boat,  with  sails  set,  gay  pennon 
streaming,  and  freighted  with  a  dozen  boys  and  girls,  came  sweeping 
gracefully  towards  the  crowd, — after  making  a  comet-like  orbit  of  four  or 
five  miles  to  the  feet  of  the  Bonder  Berg,  Bear  Mountain,  and  Anthony's 
ITose, — there  was  a  sudden  shout,  and  scattering,  and  merry  laughter, 
that  would  have  made  old  Scrooge,  even  before  his  conversion,  tremulous 
with  delight,  and  glowing  with  desires  to  be  a  boy  again  and  singing 
Chi-istmas  Carols  with  a  hearty  good-will.  I  played  the  boy  with  the 
rest  for  awhile,  and  then,  with  long  strides  upon  skates,  my  satchel  with 
portfolio  slung  over  my  shoulder,  I  bore  away  towards  the  great  lime- 
kilns on  the  shores  of  Tomkins's  Cove,  on  the  western  side  of  the  river, 
four  or  five  miles  below. 


*  The  ice-boat3  are  of  various  forms  of  constniclion.  Usually  a  strong  wooden  triangular  platform 
is  placed  upon  three  sled-runners,  having  skate-irons  on  their  bottoms.  The  rear  runner  is  worked  on  a 
pivot  or  hinge,  bj'  a  tiller  attaehed  to  a  post  that  passes  up  through  the  platform,  and  thereby  the  boat  is 
steered.  The  sails  and  rigging  are  similar  to  the  common  large  sail-boat.  The  passengers  sit  fiat  upon 
the  platform,  and  with  a  good  wind  are  moved  rapidly  over  the  ice,  oftentimes  at  the  rate  of  a  mile  in  a 
minute. 


CHAPTEE  XV. 


JN"  my  way  to  Tomkins's  Cove  I  encountered  other  groups 

■ff^i  mm  '^S'l'ftiS*     °^  people,  who  appeared  in  positive  contrast  -with  the 

'An'i&i    ^s^'iiil     merry  skaters  on  Peek's  Kill  Bay.     They  were  sober, 

thoughtful,  winter  fishermen,  thickly  scattered  over 

the  surface,  and  drawing  their  long  nets  from  narrow 

fissures  which  they  had  cut  in  the  ice.    The  tide  was  "  serving," 

and  many  a  striped  bass,  and  white  perch,  and  infant  sturgeon 

at   times,    were   drawn   out   of   their   warmer   element   to   be 

instantly  congealed  in  the  keen  wintry  air. 

These  fishermen  often  find  their  calling  almost  as  profitable 
in  winter  as  in  April  and  May,  when  they  draw  "  schools  "  of  shad  from 
the  deep.  They  generally  have  a  "  catch"  twice  a  day  when  the  tide  is 
"slack,"  their  nets  being  filled  when  it  is  ebbing  or  flowing.  They  cut 
fissures  in  the  ice,  at  right  angles  with  the  direction  of  the  tidal  currents, 
eight  or  ten  yards  in  length,  and  about  two  feet  in  width,  into  which 
they  drop  their  nets,  sink  them  with  weights,  and  stretching  them  to 
their  utmost  length,  suspend  them  by  sticks  that  lie  across  the  fissure. 
Baskets,  boxes  on  hand-sledges,  and  sometimes  sledges  drawn  by  a  horse, 
are  used  in  carrying  the  "  catch  "  to  land.  Lower  down  the  river,  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  Palisades,  when  the  strength  of  the  ice  will  allow  this 
kind  of  fishing,  bass  weighing  from  thirty  to  forty  pounds  each  are  fre- 
quently caught.  These  winter  fisheries  extend  from  the  Doader  Berg  to 
Piermont,  a  distance  of  about  twenty-five  miles. 

I  went  on  shore  at  the  ruins  of  an  old  lime-kiln  at  the  upper  edge  of 
Tomkins's  Cove,  and  sketched  the  fishermen  in  the  distance  toward  Peek's 
Kill.  It  was  a  tedious  task,  and,  with  benumbed  fingers,  I  hastened  to 
the  office  and  store  of  the  Tomkins  Lime  Company  to  seek  warmth  and 
information.  With  Mr.  Scaring,  one  of  the  propricters,  I  visited  the 
kilns.     They  are  the  most  extensive  works  of  the  kind  on  the  Hudson. 


THE    HUDSON. 


279 


They  are  at  the  foot  of  aa  immense  cliff  of  limestone,  nearly  200  feet  in 
height,  immediately  behind  the  kilns,  and  extend  more  than  half  a  mile 
along  the  river.*  The  kilns  were  numerous,  and  in  their  management,  and 
the  quarrying  of  the  limestone,  about  100  men  were  continually  employed. 
I  saw  them  on  the  brow  of  the  wooded  cliff,  loosening  huge  masses  and 
sending  them  bglow,  while  others  were  engaged  in  blasting,  and  others 
again  in  wheeling  the  lime  from  the  vents  of  the  kilns  to  heaps  in  front. 


WINTER  nsniKG. 


where  it  is  slaked  before  being  placed  in  vessels  for  transportation  to 
market.     This  is  a  necessary  precaution  against  spontaneous  combustion. 


*  This  deposit  of  limestone  occupies  a  superficial  area  of  nearly  600  acres,  extending  in  the  rear  of 
Stony  and  Grassy  Points,  where  it  disappears  beneath  tlie  red  sandstone  formation.  It  is  traversed  by 
wliite  veins  of  carbonate  of  lime.  In  1837  Mi-.  Tonikins  purchased  20  acres  of  land  covering  this  lime- 
stone bed  for  100  dollars  an  acre,  then  considered  a  verj'  extravagant  price.  The  stratum  where  they 
are  now  quaiTying  is  at  least  500  feet  in  thickness.  It  is  estimated  that  an  acre  of  this  limestone, 
worked  down  to  the  water  level,  will  yield  600,000  barrels  of  lirue,  upon  which  a  mean  profit  of  25  cents 
a  b-orrel  is  the  minimum  Some  of  this  limestone  is  black  and  variegated,  and  makes  pleasing  orna- 
mental marbles.    Most  of  it  is  blue. 


280 


THE    HUDSON. 


Many  vessels  arc  employed  in  carrying  away  lime,  limestone,  and 
"gravel"  (pulverized  limestone,  not  fit  for  the  kiln)  from  Tomkins's 
Cove,  for  wliose  accommodation  several  small  wharves  have  been 
constructed. 

One  million  bushels  of  lime  were  produced  at  the  kilns  each  year.  From 
the  quarries,  thousands  of  tons  of  the  stone  were  sent  a-nnually  to  kilns 
in  New  Jersey.  Trom  20,000  to  25,000  tons  of  the  "  gravel  "  were  used 
each  year  in  the  construction  of  macadamised  roads.     The  quarry  had 


FISHERMEN,  FROM  THE  OLD  LIME-KILNS. 


been  worked  almost  twenty-five  years.  From  small  beginnings  the 
establishment  had  grown  to  a  very  extensive  one.  The  dwelling  of  the 
chief  proprietor  was  upon  the  hill  above  the  kiln  at  the  upper  side  of 
the  cove ;  and  near  the  water  the  houses  of  the  workmen  form  a  pleasant 
little  village.  The  country  behind,  for  many  miles,  is  very  wild,  and 
almost  uncultivated. 

I  followed  a  narrow  road  along  the  bank  of  the  river,  to  the  extreme 


m 


THE    HUDSON. 


281 


southern  verge  of  the  limestone  cliff,  near  Stony  Point,  and  there 
sketched  that  famous,  hold,  rocky  peninsula  from  the  best  spot  where  a 
view  of  its  entire  length  may  he  obtained.  The  whole  Point  is  a  mass  of 
granite  rock,  with  patches  of  evergreen  trees  and  shrubs,  excepting  on  its 
northern  side  (at  which  we  are  looking  in  the  sketch),  where  maybe  seen 
a  black  cliff  of  magnetic  iron  ore.  It  is  too  limited  in  quantity  to  tempt 
labour  or  capital  to  quarry  it,  and  the  granite  is  too  much  broken  to  be 


TOMKINS'S   LIME-KILXS  AXP  t)UARRV. 


very  desirable  for  building  purposes.  So  that  peninsula,  clustered  with 
historic  associations,  will  ever  remain  almost  unchanged  in  form  and 
feature.  A  lighthouse,  a  keeper's  lodge,  and  a  fog-hell,  occupy  its  summit. 
These  stand  upon  and  within  the  mounds  that  mark  the  site  of  the  old 
fort  which  was  built  there  at  the  beginning  of  the  war  for  independence. 
Stony  Point  was  the  theatre  of  stirring  events  in  the  summer  of  1779. 
The  fort  there,  and  Fort  Fayette  on  Verplanck's  Point,  on  the  opposite  side 


282 


THE   HUDSON. 


of  the  river,  were  captured  from  the  Americans  by  Sir  Hemy  Clinton,  on 
the  1st  of  June  of  that  year.  Clinton  commanded  the  troops  in  person. 
These  were  conveyed  by  a  small  squadron  under  the  command  of  Admiral 
Collier.  The  garrison  at  Stony  Point  was  very  small,  and  retired  towards 
West  Point  on  the  approach  of  the  British.  The  fort  changed  masters 
without  bloodshed.  The  victors  pointed  the  guns  of  the  captured  fortress, 
and  cannon  and  bombs  brought  by  themselves,  upon  Fort  Fayette  the  next 


BTONY  POINT. 


morning.     General  Vaughan  assailed  it  in  the  rear,  and  the  little  garrison 
soon  surrendered  themselves  prisoners  of  war. 

These  fortresses,  commanding  the  lower  entrance  to  the  Highlands, 
were  very  important.  General  Anthony  Wayne,  known  as  "Mad 
Anthony,"  on  account  of  his  impetuosity  and  daring  in  the  service,  was 
then  in  command  of  the  Americans  in  the  neighbourhood.  Burning  with 
a  desire  to  retake  the  forts,  he  applied  to  Washington  for  permission  to 
make  the  attempt.     It  would  be  perilous  in  the  extreme.    The  position  of 


THE    HUDSON. 


CUF 


283 


the  fort  was  almost  impregnable.  Situated  upon  a  high,  rocky  peninsula, 
an  island  at  high  water,  and  always  inaccessible  dry-shod,  except  across 
a  narrow  causeway,  it  was  strongly  defended  by  outworks  and  a  double 
row  of  alattis.  Upon  three  sides  of  the  rock  were  the  waters  of  the 
Hudson,  and  on  the  fourth  was  a  morass,  deep  and  dangerous.  The 
cautious  Washington  considered ;  when  the  impetuous  Wayne,  scorning 
all  obstacles,  said,  "General,  I'll  storm  hell  if  you  will  only  plan  it!" 


STONr  poisr  lighthuuse  and  fog-bell. 


Permission  to  attack  Stony  Point  was  given,  preparations  were  secretly 
made,  and  at  near  midnight,  on  the  15th  of  July,  "Wayne  led  a  strong 
force  of  determined  men  towards  the  fortress.  They  were  divided  into 
two  columns,  each  led  by  a  forlorn  hope  of  twenty  picked  men.  They 
advanced  undiscovered  until  within  pistol-shot  of  the  picket  guard  on  the 
heights.  The  garrison  were  suddenly  aroused  from  sleep,  and  the  deep 
silence  of  the  night  was  broken  by  the  roll  of  the  drum,  the  loud  cry  "To 
arras !  to  arms  !  "  the  rattle  of  musketry  fi'om  the  ramparts  and  behind  the 


284 


THE   HUDSON. 


ahattis,  and  the  roar  of  cannon  charged  with  deadly  grape-shot.  In  the 
face  of  this  terrible  storm  the  Americans  made  their  way,  by  force  of 
bayonet,  to  the  centre  of  the  works.  Wayne  was  struck  upon  the  head 
by  a  musket  ball  that  brought  him  upon  his  knees.  "March  on!"  he 
cried.  "Carry  me  into  the  fort,  for  I  will  die  at  the  head  of  my 
column  ! "  The  wound  was  not  very  severe,  and  in  an  hour  he  had 
sufficiently  recovered  to  write  the  following  note  to  "Washington  : — 

"  Stoni/  Point,  16th  July,  1779,  2  o'chch,  a.m. 
"Deau  Gexeeal, — The  fort  and  garrison,  with  Colonel  Johnston,  arc 
ours.     Our  officers  and  men  behaved  like  men  who  are  determined  to  be 

free. 

"  Yours  most  respectfully, 

"  Anthony  "Wayne." 

At  dawn  the  next  morning  the  cannon  of  the  captured  fort  were  again 
turned  upon  Fort  Fayette  on  Verplanck's  Point,  then  occupied  by  the 
British  under  Colonel  "Webster.  A  desultory  cannonading  was  kept  up 
during  the  day.  Sir  Henry  Clinton  sent  relief  to  "W^ebster,  and  the 
Americans  ceased  further  attempts  to  recapture  the  fortress.  They  could 
not  even  retain  Stony  Point,  their  numbers  were  so  few.  "Washington 
ordered  them  to  remove  the  ordnance  and  stores,  and  destroy  and  abandon 
the  works.  A  large  portion  of  the  heavy  ordnance  was  placed  upon  a 
galley  to  be  conveyed  to  "West  Point.  It  was  sunk  by  a  shot  from  the 
Vulture,  off  Bonder  Berg  Point,  and  one  of  the  cannon,  as  we  have 
observed,  raised  a  few  years  ago  by  accident,  was  supposed  to  have  been 
brought  up  from  the  wreck  of  the  ship  of  the  famous  Captain  Kidd. 
Congress  testified  its  gratitude  to  "Wayne  for  his  services  by  a  vote  of  thanks 
for  his  "brave,  pi-udent,  and  soldierly  conduct,"  and  also  ordered  a  gold 
medal,  emblematic  of  the  event,  to  be  struck  and  presented  to  him. 
Copies  of  this  medal,  in  silver,  were  given  to  two  of  the  subordinate 
officers  engaged  in  the  enterprise. 

I  climbed  to  the  summit  of  Stony  Point  along  a  steep,  narrow,  winding 
road  from  a  deserted  wharf,  the  snow  almost  knee-deep  in  some  places. 
The  view  was  a  most  interesting  one.     As  connected  with  the  history  and 


TUE    HUDSON. 


285 


traditions  of  the  countiy,  every  spot  upon  which,  the  eye  rested  was 
classic  ground,  and  the  waters  awakened  memories  of  many  legends. 
Truthful  chronicles  and  weird  stories  in  abundance  are  associated  with  the 
scenes  around.  Arnold's  treason  and  Andre's  capture  and  death,  the 
"storm  ship"  and  the  "bulbous-bottomed  Dutch  goblin  that  keeps  the 
Bonder  Berg,"  already  mentioned,  and  a  score  of  histories  and  tales 
pressed  upon  the  attention  and  claimed  a  passing  thought.  But  the  keen 
wintry  wind  sweeping  over  the  Point  kept  the  mind  prosaic.     There  was 


VERPLAKCK'S  POINT,  FROM   SrO.W  I'OIXT  LIGHTHOUSE. 


no  poetry  in  the  attempts  to  sketch  two  or  three  of  the  most  prominent 
scenes  ;  and  I  resolved,  when  that  task  was  accomplished,  to  abandon  the 
amusement  until  the  warm  sun  of  spring  should  release  the  waters  from 
their  Boreal  chains,  clothe  the  earth  in  verdure,  and  iuvite  the  birds  from 
the  balmy  south  to  build  their  nests  in  the  branches  where  the  snow-heaps 
then  lay. 

From  the  lighthouse  is  a  comprehensive  view  of  Verplanck's  Point 


280 


THE    HUDSON. 


opposite,  whereon  no  vestige  of  Fort  Fayette  now  remains.  A  little 
village,  pleasant  pastures  and  tilled  fields  in  summer,  and  brick 
manufactories  the  year  round,  now  occupy  the  places  of  former  structures 
of  war,  around  which  the  soil  still  yields  an  occasional  ball,  and  bomb, 
and  musket  shot.  The  Indians  called  this  place  Mc-a-nagh.  They  sold 
it  to  Stephen  Van  Cortlandt,  in  the  year  1683,  with  land  east  of  it  called 
Ap-im-magh-pocjh.  The  purchase  was  confirmed  by  patent  from  the 
English  government.     On  this  point  Colonel  Livingston  held  command  at 


GRASSY  POI>T  k'^D  TORN  MOUNTAIN. 


the  time  of  Arnold's  treason,  in  1780  ;  and  here  were  the  head-quarters  of 
"Washington  for  some  time  in  1782.  It  was  off  this  point  that  Henry 
Hudson  first  anchored  the  Half-Moon  after  leaving  Tonkers.  The 
Highland  Indians  flocked  to  the  vessel  in  great  numbers.  One  of  them 
was  killed  in  an  affray,  and  this  circumstance  planted  the  seed  of  hatred 
of  the  white  man  in  the  bosom  of  the  Indians  in  that  region. 

From  the  southern  slope  of  Stony  Point,  where  the  rocks  lay  in  wild 


I 


THE    HUDSON.  287 


confusion,  a  fine  view  of  Grassy  Point,  Brewster's  Cove,  Haverstraw  Bay, 
the  Torn  Mountain,  and  the  surrounding  country  may  be  obtained.  The 
little  village  of  Grassy  Point,  where  brick-making  is  the  staple  industrial 
pursuit,  appeared  like  a  dark  tongue  thrust  out  from  the  surrounding 
whiteness.  Haverstraw  Bay,  which  swarms  in  summer  with  water-craft 
of  every  kind,  lay  on  the  left,  in  glittering  solitude  beneath  the  wintry 
clouds  that  gathered  while  I  was  there,  and  cast  down  a  thick,  fierce, 
blinding  snow-shower,  quite  unlike  that  described  by  Bryant,  when  he 
sung — ■ 

"  Here  delicate  snow-stars  out  of  the  cloud, 
Come  tloatiug  downward  in  airy  play, 
Like  spangles  dropped  from  the  glistening  crowd 

That  whiten  by  night  the  milky  way  ; 
There  broader  and  burlier  masses  fall ; 
The  sullen  water  buries  them  all : 

Flake  after  Hake, 
All  drowned  in  the  dai-k  and  silent  lake." 

The  snow-shower  soon  passed  by.  The  spires  of  Haverstraw  appeared  in 
the  distance,  at  the  foot  of  the  mountain,  and  on  the  right  was  Treason 
Hill,  with  the  famous  mansion  of  Joshua  Hett  Smith,  who  was  involved 
in  the  odium  of  Arnold's  attempt  to  betray  his  country. 

Here  I  will  recall  the  memories  of  a  visit  there  at  the  close  of  a  pleasant 
summer  day,  several  years  ago.  I  had  lingered  upon  Stony  Point,  until 
near  sunset,  listening  to  the  stories  of  an  old  waterman,  then  eighty-five 
years  of  age,  who  assisted  in  building  the  fort,  and  then  I  started  on  foot 
for  Haverstraw.  I  stopped  frequently  to  view  the  beautiful  prospect  of 
river  and  country  on  the  east,  while  the  outlines  of  the  distant  shores 
were  imperceptibly  fading  as  the  twilight  came  on.  At  dusk  I  passed  an 
acre  of  ground,  lying  by  the  road-side,  which  was  given  some  years  before 
as  a  burial-place  for  the  neighbourhood.  It  was  already  populous.  The 
lines  of  Longfellow  were  suggested  and  pondered.     He  says, — ■ 

"  I  like  that  ancient  Saxon  phrase  which  calls 
The  burial-ground  God's  Acre  !    It  is  just ; 
It  consecrates  ea<h  grave  within  its  walls. 
And  breathes  a  benison  o'er  the  sleeping  dust. 

"  God's  Acre!    Yes,  that  blessed  name  imparts 
Comfort  to  those  who  in  the  gi-ave  have  sowii 
The  seed  that  they  had  garner'd  in  their  hearts, 
Their  bread  of  life,  alas  !  no  more  their  own." 


288 


THE   HUDSON. 


Night  had  fallen  when  I  reached  Treason  Hill,  so  I  passed  on  to  the 
village  near.  Early  on  the  following  morning,  before  the  dew  had  left 
the  grass,  I  sketched  Smith's  House,  where  Arnold  and  Andre  completed 
those  negotiations  concerning  the  delivery,  by  the  former,  of  West  Point 
and  its  defenders  into  the  hands  of  the  British,  for  a  mercenary  con- 
sideration, which  led  to  the  death  of  one,  and  the  eternal  infamy  of  the 
other. 

The  story  of  Arnold's  treason  may  be  briefly  told.  We  have  had 
occasion  to  allude  to  it  several  times  already. 


SMITH  S  HOUSE,  ON  TREASON   HILL. 


Arnold  was  a  brave  soldier,  but  a  bad  man.  He  was  wicked  in  boy- 
hood, and  in~eavly  manhood  his  conduct  was  marked  by  traits  that  pro- 
mised ultimate  disgrace.  Impulsive,  vindictive,  and  unscrupulous,  he 
was  personally  unpopular,  and  was  seldom  without  a  quarrel  with  some 
of  his  companions  in  arms.  This  led  to  continual  irritations,  and  his 
ambitious  aims  were  often  thwarted.      He   fought  nobly   for  freedom 


THE   HUDSON.  "  289 


during  the  earlier  years  of  the  war,  but  at  last  his  passions  gained  the 
mastery  over  his  judgment  and  conscience. 

Arnold  twice  received  honourable  wounds  during  the  war — one  at 
Quebec,  the  other  almost  two  years  later  at  Saratoga ;  •'•'  both  were  in  the 
leg.  The  one  last  received,  while  gallantly  fighting  the  troops  of  Bur- 
goyne,  was  not  yet  healed  when,  in  the  spring  of  1778,  the  British  army, 
under  Sir  Henry  Clinton,  evacuated  Philadelphia,  and  the  Americans, 
Tinder  Washington,  came  from  their  huts  at  Valley  Forge  to  take  their 
places.  Arnold,  not  being  able  to  do  active  duty  in  the  field,  was  ap- 
pointed military  governor  of  Philadelphia.  Fond  of  display,  he  there 
entered  upon  a  course  of  extravagant  living  that  was  instrumental  in  his 
ruin.  He  made  his  head-quarters  at  the  fine  old  mansion  built  by  William 
Penn,  kept  a  coach  and  four,  gave  splendid  dinner  parties,  and  charmed 
the  gayer  portions  of  Philadelphia  society  with  his  princely  display.  His 
station  and  the  splendour  of  his  equipage  captivated  the  daughter  of 
Edward  Shippen,  a  leading  loyalist,  and  afterwards  chief  justice  of  Penn- 
sylvania ;  she  was  then  only  eighteen  years  of  age.  Her  beauty  and 
accomplishments  won  the  heart  of  the  widower  of  forty.  They  were 
married.  Staunch  Whigs  shook  their  heads  in  doubt  concerning  the 
alliance  of  an  American  general  with  a  leading  Tory  family. 

Arnold's  extravagance  soon  brought  numerous  creditors  to  his  door. 
Rather  than  retrench  his  expenses  he  procured  money  by  a  system  of 
fraud  and  prostitution  of  his  official  power  :  the  city  being  under  martial 
law,  his  will  was  supreme.  The  people  became  incensed,  and  official 
inquiries  into  his  conduct  were  iiistitutcd,  first  by  the  local  state  council, 
and  then  by  the  Continental  C'ongi'ess.  The  latter  body  referred  the 
whole  matter  to  "Washington.  The  accused  was  tried  by  court-martial, 
and  he  was  found  guilty  of  two  of  four  charges.  The  court  passed  the 
mildest  sentence  possible — a  mere  reprimand  by  the  commander-in-chief. 
This  duty  "Washington  performed  in  the  most  delicate  manner.     "  Our 


*  Soon  after  Arnold  joined  the  British  Army,  he  was  sent  witli  a  considerable  force  upon  a  marauding 
expedition  up  tlie  James  Ei%'er,  in  Virginia.  In  an  action  not  far  from  Richmond,  tlie  capital,  some 
.-Vmericans  were  made  prisoners.  He  asked  one  of  them  wliat  his  countrj-raen  would  do  with  him 
(Arnold)  if  they  should  catch  him.  The  prisoner  instantly  replied,  "  Bin-y  tlie  leg  that  was  wounded  at 
Quebec  and  Saratoga  with  military  honours,  and  hang  the  remainder  of  you." 

P   P 


290  THE   HUDSON. 


profession,"  lie  said,  "is  the  chastest  of  all;  oven  the  shadow  of  a  fault 
tarnishes  the  lustre  of  our  finest  achievements.  The  least  inadvertence 
may  rob  us  of  the  public  favour,  so  hard  to  be  acquired.  I  reprimand 
you  for  having  forgotten  that,  in  proportion  as  you  had  rendered  yourself 
formidable  to  our  enemies,  you  should  have  been  guarded  and  temperate 
in  your  deportment  towards  your  fellow  citizens.  Exhibit  anew  those 
noble  qualities  which  have  placed  you  on  tho-list  of  our  most  valued 
commanders.  I  will  myself  furnish  you,  as  far  as  it  may  be  in  my  power, 
with  opportunities  of  regaining  the  esteem  of  your  country." 

What  punishment  could  have  been  lighter?  yet  Arnold  was  greatly 
irritated.  A  year  had  elapsed  since  his  accusation,  and  he  expected  a 
full  acquittal.  But  for  nine  months  the  rank  weeds  of  treason  had  been 
growing  luxuriantly  in  his  heart.  He  saw  no  way  to  extricate  himself 
from  debt,  and  retain  his  position  in  the  army.  For  nine  months  he  had 
been  in  secret  correspondence  with  British  officers  in  New  York.  His 
pride  was  now  wounded,  his  vindictive  spirit  was  aroused,  and  he  resolved 
to  sell  his  country  for  gold  and  military  rank.  He  opened  a  correspon- 
dence in  a  disguised  hand,  and  in  commercial  phrase,  with  Major  John 
Andre,  the  young  and  highly  accomplished  adjutant-general  of  the 
British  army. 

How  far  Mrs.  Arnold  (who  had  been  quite  intimate  with  Major  Andre 
in  Philadelphia,  and  had  kept  up  an  epistolary  correspondence  with  him 
after  the  British  army  had  left  that  city)  was  implicated  in  these  treason- 
able communications  we  shall  never  know.  Justice  compels  us  to  say  that 
there  is  no  evidence  of  her  having  had  any  knowledge  of  the  transaction 
until  the  explosion  of  the  plot  at  Beverly  already  mentioned. 

Arnold's  deportment  now  suddenly  changed.  For  a  long  time  he  had 
been  sullen  and  indifferent ;  now  his  patriotism  glowed  with  all  the 
apparent  ardour  of  his  earlier  career.  Hitherto  he  had  pleaded  the  bad 
state  of  his  wounds  as  an  excuse  for  inaction ;  now  they  liealed  rapidly. 
He  appeared  anxious  to  join  his  old  companions  in  arms ;  and  to  General 
Schuyler,  and  other  influential  inen,  then  in  Congress,  he  expressed  an 
ardent  desire  to  be  in  the  camp  or  in  the  field.  They  believed  him  to  be 
sincere,  and  rejoiced.  They  wrote  cheering  letters  to  "Washington  on  the 
subject ;  and,  pursuant  to  Arnold's  intimation,  they  suggested  the  pro- 


THE   HUDSON.  291 


priety  of  appointing  him  to  the  command  of  West  Point,  the  most  im- 
portant post  in  the  country,  .b'nold  visited  "Washington's  camp  at  the 
same  time,  and,  in  a  modest  way,  expressed  a  desire  to  have  a  command 
like  that  of  West  Point,  as  liis  wounds  would  not  permit  him  to  perform 
very  active  service  on  horseback. 

The  change  surprised  Washington,  yet  he  was  unsuspicious  of  wrong. 
He  gave  Arnold  the  command  of  "  West  Point  and  its  dependencies," 
and  furnished  him  with  written  instructions  on  the  3rd  of  August,  1780. 
Then  it  was  that  Arnold  made  his  head-quarters  at  Beverly,  and  worked 
vigorously  for  the  consummation  of  his  treasonable  designs.  There  he 
was  joined  by  his  wife  and  infant  son.  He  at  once  communicated,  in  his 
disguised  writing  and  commercial  phraseology,  under  the  signature  of 
Gmtavm,  his  plan  to  Sir  Henry  Clinton,  through  Major  Andre,  whom  he 
addressed  as  "John  Anderson."  That  plan  we  have  already  alluded  to. 
Sir  Henry  was  delighted  with  it,  and  eagerly  sought  to  carry  it  out.  He 
was  not  yet  fully  aware  of  the  real  character  behind  "  Gustavus,"  although 
for  several  months  he  had  suspected  it  to  be  General  Arnold.  Unwilling 
to  proceed  further  upon  uncertainties,  he  proposed  sending  an  officer  to 
some  point  near  the  American  lines,  who  should  have  a  personal  interview 
with  his  correspondent.  "Gustavus"  consented,  stipulating,  however, 
that  the  messenger  from  Clinton  should  be  Major  Andre,  his  adjutant- 
general. 

Arnold  and  Andre  agreed  to  meet  at  Dobbs's  Ferry,  twenty-two  miles 
above  New  York,  upon  what  was  then  known  as  neutral  ground.  The 
British  water-guard  prevented  the  approach  of  Arnold.  Sir  Henry,  anxious 
to  complete  the  arrangement,  and  to  execute  the  plan,  sent  the  J'uUare 
sloop  of  war  up  the  river  as  far  as  Tarry  Town,  with  Colonel  Eobinson, 
the  owner  of  Beverly,  who  managed  to  communicate  with  Ai-nold.  A 
meeting  of  Arnold  and  Andre  was  arranged.  On  the  morning  of  the 
20th  of  August,  the  latter  officer  left  New  York,  proceeded  by  land  to 
Dobbs's  Ferry,  and  from  thence  to  the  Vulture,  where  it  was  expected  the 
traitor  would  meet  him  that  night.  The  wily  general  avoided  the  great 
danger.  He  repaired  to  the  house  of  Joshua  Hett  Smith,  a  brother  to  the 
Tory  chief  justice  of  New  York,  and  employed  him  to  go  to  the  Vulture 
at  night,   and  bring  a  gentleman  to  the  western  shore  of  the  Hudson, 


292 


THE   HUDSON. 


Thore  -was  ilela}',  and  Smith  did  not  make  tlie  voyage  until  the  night  of 
the  21st,  alter  the  moon  had  gone  hehind  the  high  hills  in  the  west. 
With  mufHcd  oars  he  paddled  noiselessly  out  of  Haverstraw  Creek,  and, 
at  little  past  midnight,  reached  the  Vulture.  It  was  a  serene  night,  not 
a  ripple  was  upon  the  bosom  of  the  river.     Not  a  word  was  spoken.     The 


MEETIKG-I'LACE  OF  AKDKE  AKD  ABXOLD. 


boat  came  alongside,  with  a  concerted  signal,  and  received  Sir  Henry's 
representative.  Andre  was  dressed  in  his  scarlet  uniform,  but  all  was 
concealed  by  a  long  blue  surtout,  buttoned  to  the  chin.  He  was  conveyed 
to  an  estuary  at  the  foot  of  Long  Clove  Mountain,   a  little  below  the 


THE    HUDSON. 


293 


Village  of  Haverstraw.  Smith  led  the  officer  to  a  thicket  near  the  shore, 
and  then,  in  a  low  whisper,  introduced  "John  Anderson  "  to  "Gustavus," 
who  acknowledged  himself  to  be  Major-General  Arnold,  of  the  Continental 
Army.  There,  in  the  deep  shadows  of  night,  concealed  from  human  cogni- 
zance, with  no  witnesses  but  the  stars  above  them,  they  discussed  the 
dark  plans  of  treason,  and  plotted  the  utter  ruin  of  the  Republican  cause. 
The  faint  harbingers  of  day  began  to  appear  in  the  east,  and  yet  the  con- 
ference was  earnest  and  unfinished.  Smith  came  and  urged  the  necessity 
of  haste  to  prevent  discovery.  Much  was  yet  to  be  done.  Arnold  had 
expected  a  protracted  interview,  and  had  brought  two  horses  with  him. 
Wliile  the  morning  twilight  was  yet  dim,  they  mounted  and  started  for 
Smith's  house.  They  had  not  proceeded  far  when  tlie  voice  of  a  sentinel 
challenged  them,  and  Andre  found  himself  entering  the  American  lines. 
He  paused,  for  within  them  he  would  be  a  spy.  Arnold  assured  him  by 
promises  of  safety;  and  before  sunrise  they  were  at  Smith's  house,  on 
what  has  since  been  known  as  Treason  Hill.  At  that  moment  the  sound 
of  a  cannon  came  booming  over  Haverstraw  Bay  from  the  eastern  shore  ; 
and  witliin  twenty  minutes  the  Vulture  was  seen  dropping  down  the  river, 
to  avoid  the  shots  of  an  American  gun  ou  Teller's  Point.  To  the  amaze- 
ment of  Andre,  she  disappeared.  Deep  inquietude  stirred  his  spirit.  He 
was  within  the  American  lines,  without  flag  or  pass.  If  detected,  he 
would  be  called  a  spy — a  name  which  he  despised  as  much  as  that  of 
traitor. 

At  noon  the  whole  plan  was  arranged.  Arnold  placed  in  Andre's  pos- 
session several  papers — fatal  papers  ! — explanatory  of  the  condition  of 
AVest  Point  and  its  dependencies.  Zealous  for  the  interests  of  his  king 
and  country,  Andre,  contrary  to  the  explicit  orders  of  Sir  Henry  Clinton, 
received  them.  He  placed  tliem  in  liis  stockings,  under  his  feet,  at  the 
suggestion  of  Arnold,  received  a  pass  from  the  traitor  in  the  event  of 
his  being  compelled  to  return  to  New  York  by  land,  and  waited  with 
great  impatience  for  the  approaching  night,  when  he  should  be  taken  in 
a  boat  to  the  Vulture.  The  remainder  of  the  sad  narrative  will  be  re- 
peated presently  at  a  more  appropriate  point  in  our  journey  towards 
the  sea. 

Returning  from  this  historical  digression,  I  will  recur  to  the  narrative 


294 


THE   HUDSON. 


of  the  events  of  a  winter's  day  on  the  Hudson,  only  to  say,  that  after 
sketching  the  Lighthouse  and  Fog-hell  structure  upon  Stony  Point,  I 
hastened  to  the  river,  resumed  my  skates,  and  at  twilight  arrived  at 
Peek's  Kill,  in  time  to  take  the  railway-car  for  home.  I  had  experienced 
a  tedious  but   interesting   day.      The  remembrance  of  it  is   far  more 


delightful  than  was  its  endurance. 


^^>^ 


CHAPTER    XVI. 


HE  ^Yintel■  was  mild  and  constant.     No  special  severity 
marked  its  dealings,  yet  it  made  no  deviations  in  that 
respect  from  the  usual  course  of  the  season  sufflcicnt  to 
mark  it  as  an  innovator.     Its  breath  chilled  the  waters 
^X^  early,  and  for  several  weeks  the  Hudson  was  hridgtd 

with  strong  ice,  from  the  wilderness  almost  to  the  sea.  Mean- 
while the  whole  country  was  covered  with  a  thick  mantle  of 
snow.  Skaters,  ice-boats,  and  sleighs  traversed  the  smooth 
surface  of  the  river  with  perfect  safety,  as  far  down  as  Peek's 
Kill  Bay,  and  the  counties  upon  its  borders,  separated  by  its  flood  in 
summer,  were  joined  by  the  solid  ice,  that  offered  a  medium  for  pleasant 
intercourse  during  the  short  and  dreary  days  of  winter. 

Valentino's  Day  came — the  day  in  England  traditionally  associated 
with  the  wooing  of  birds  and  lovers,  and  when  the  crocus  and  the  daffodil 
proclaim  the  approach  of  spring.  But  here  the  birds  and  the  early 
flowers  were  unseen ;  the  sceptre  of  the  frost  king  was  yet  all-potent. 
The  blue  bird,  the  robin,  and  the  swallow,  our  earliest  feathered  visitors 
from  the  south,  yet  lingered  in  their  southern  homes.  Soon  the  clouds 
gathered  and  came  down  in  warm  and  gentle  rain  ;  the  deep  snows  of 
northern  New  York  melted  rapidly,  and  the  Upper  Hudson  and  the 
Jlohawk  poured  out  a  mighty  flood  that  spread  over  the  valleys,  submerged 
town  wharves,  and  burst  the  ribs  of  ioe  yet  thick  and  compact.  Down 
came  the  turbid  waters  whose  attrition  below,  working  with  the  warm 
sun  above,  loosened  the  icy  chains  that  for  seventy  days  had  held  the 
Hudson  in  bondage,  and  towards  the  close  of  February  great  masses  of 
the  shivered  fetters  were  moving  with  the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  tide.  The 
snow  disappeared,  the  buds  swelled,  and,  to  the  delight  of  all,  one 
beautiful  morning,  when  even  the  dew  was  not  congealed,  the  blue  birds, 
first  harbingers  of  approaching  summer,  were  heard  gaily  singing  in  the 


296 


THE   HUDSON. 


trees  and  hedges.  It  was  a  ■welcome  and  delightful  invitation  to  the 
fields  and  waters,  and  I  hastened  to  the  lower  borders  of  the  Highland 
region  to  resume  my  pen  and  pencil  sketches  of  the  Hudson  from  the 
wilderness  to  the  sea. 

The  air  was  as  balmy  as  May  on  the  evening-  of  my  anival  at  Sing 
Sing,  on  the  eastern  bank  of  the  Hudson,  where  the  State  of  New  York 
has  a  large  penitentiary  for  men  and  women.  I  strolled  up  the  steep 
and  winding  street  to  the  heart  of  the  village,  and  took  lodgings  for  the 


si,HU.H  Rii  r:G  ox  ti;e  ntrPo\. 


night.  Tlie  sun  was  yet  two  hours  above  the  horizon.  1  went  out 
immediately  upon  a  short  tour  of  observation,  and  found  ample  compen- 
sation for  the  toil  occasioned  by  the  hilly  pathways  traversed. 

Sing  Sing  is  a  very  pleasant  village,  of  almost  four  thousand  inhabitants. 
It  lies  upon  a  rudely  broken  slope  of  hills,  that  rise  about  one  hundred 
and  eighty  feet  above  the  river,  and  overlook  Tappan  Bay,*  or  Tappaanse 
Zee,  as  the  early  Dutch  settlers  called  an  expansion  of  the  Hudson, 


Tap-pan  was  the  naiv.e  of  a  Mohe^an  tribe  tliat  inliabited  tlie  eastein  shores  of  the  bay. 


THE    HUDSON. 


297 


extending  from  Teller's  or  Croton  Point  on  the  north,  to  the  northern 
hluff  of  the  Palisades  near  Piermont.  The  origin  of  the  name  is  to  be 
found  in  the  word  Sint-sinck,  the  title  of  a  powerful  clan  of  the  Mohegan 


CROTON  AQUEDUCT  AT  SIKG  SIXG. 


or  river  Indians,  who  called  this  spot  Os-shi-ing,  from  ossiii,  a  stone,  and 
ing,  a  place — stony  place.  A  very  appropriate  name.  The  land  in  this 
vicinity,  first  parted  with  by  the  Indians,  was  granted  to   Prederick 


298 


THE   HUDSON. 


Philipsc  (who  owned  a  large  manorial  estate  along  the  Hudson), 
in  1685. 

Passing  tlirough  tlic  upper  portion  of  the  village  of  Sing  Sing  is  a 
wild,  picturesque  ravine,  lined  with  evergreen  trees,  with  sides  so  rugged 
that  the  works  of  man  have  only  here  and  there  found  lodgment.  Through 
it  flows  the  jnn,  as  the  Dutch  called  it,  or  Sint'-sinok  hrook,  which  rises 
among  the  hills  east  of  the  village,  and  falls  into  the  Hudson  after  a 
succession  of  pretty  rapids  and  cascades.  Over  it  the  waters  of  the 
Croton  river  pass  on  their  way  to  supply  the  city  of  New  York  witli  a 
healthful  beverage.  Their  channel  is  of  heavy  masonry,  here  lying  upon 
an  elliptical  arch  of  hewn  granite,  of  eighty-eight  feet  span,  its  keystone 
more  than  seventy  feet  from  the  waters  of  the  hrook  under  it.  This 
great  aqueduct  will  be  more  fully  considered  presently. 

On  the  southern  borders  of  the  village  of  Sing  Sing  is  a  rough  group 
of  .small  hills,  called  collectively  Mount  Pleasant.  They  are  formed  of 
dolomitic,  or  white  coarse-grained  marble,  of  excellent  quality  and 
almost  inexhaustible  quantity,  cropping  out  from  a  thin  soil  in  many 
places.  At  the  foot  of  Mount  Pleasant,  on  the  shore  of  the  river,  is  a 
large  prison  for  men,  with  a  number  of  workshops  and  other  buildings, 
belonging  to  the  State  of  New  York.  A  little  way  up  the  slope  is  the 
prison  for  women,  a  very  neat  and  substantial  building,  with  a  fine 
colonnade  on  the  river  front.  These  prisons  were  built  by  convicts  about 
thirty  years  ago,  when  there  were  two  establishments  of  the  kind  in  the 
State,  one  in  the  city  of  New  York,  the  other  at  Auburn,  in  the  interior. 
A  new  system  of  prison  discipline  had  been  adopted.  Instead  of  the  old 
system  of  indolent,  solitary  confinement,  the  workhouse  feature  was 
combined  witli  incarceration  in  separate  cells  at  night.  They  were  made 
to  work  diligently  all  day,  but  in  perfect  silence,  no  recognition  by  word, 
look,  or  gesture,  being  allowed  among  them.  The  adoption  of  this 
system,  in  1823,  rendered  the  prison  accommodation  insufficient,  and  a 
new  establishment  was  authorised  in  1824.  Mount  Pleasant,  near  Sing 
Sing,  was  purchased,  and  in  May,  1826,  Captain  Lynds,  a  farm  agent  of 
the  Auburn  prison,  proceeded  with  one  hundred  felons  from  that  estab- 
lishment to  erect  the  new  penitentiary.  They  quarried  and  wrought 
diligently  among  the  marble  rooks  at  Mount  Pleasant,  and  the  prison  for 


ira^ 


THE   HTJDSON. 


299 


men  ■\7as  completed  in  1829,  ■when  the  convicts  in  the  old  State  prison  in 
the  city  of  New  York  were  removed  to  it.  It  had  eight  hundred  cells, 
hut  these  were  found  to  he  too  few,  and  in  1831  another  story  was  added 
to  the  huilding,  and  with  it  two  hundred  more  cells,  making  one 
thousand  in  all,  the  present  number.  More  arc  needed,  for  the  number 
of  convicts  in  the  men's  prison,  at  the  beginning  of  1861,  was  a  little 
more  than  thirteen  liundrcd.     In  the  prison  for  women  there  were  only 


STATE  PaiSOX  AT  SIKG  SIXG. 


one  hundred  cells,  while  the  number  of  convicts  was  one  hundred  and 
fifty  at  that  time. 

The  ground  occupied  by  the  prisons  is  about  ten  feet  abo-\'e  high-water 
mark.  The  main  building,  in  which  are  the  cells,  is  four  hundred  and 
eighty  feet  in  length,  forty-four  feet  in  width,  and  five  stories  in  height. 
Between  the  outside  walls  and  the  cells  there  is  a  space  of  about  twelve 
feet,   open  from  floor  to  roof.     A  part  of  it  is  occupied   by  a  series  of 


300 


THE   HUDSON. 


galleries,  there  being  a  row  of  one  liuntlred  cells  to  eacli  story  on  both 
fronts,  and  bacljing  each  other.  Between  the  prison  and  the  river  are 
the  several  workshojis,  in  which  various  trades  are  carried  on.  In  front 
of  the  prison  for  women  is  the  guard-house,  where  arms  and  instructions 
are  gi^•cn  out  to  thirty-one  guardsmen  every  morning.  Between  the 
guard-house  and  the  prison  the  Hudson  River  Eailway  passes,  partly 
through  two  tunnels  and  a  deep  trench.  Upon  the  highest  points  of 
Mount  Pleasant  are  guard-houses,  which  overlook  the  quarries  and  other 
places  of  industrial  operations. 


STATE  PEISOSEES. 


It  was  just  at  sunset  when  I  finished  my  i?kctch  of  the  prisons  and 
workshops.  A  large  portion  of  Tappan  Bay,  and  the  range  of  high  hills 
upon  its  western  sliore,  were  then  immersed  in  a  thin  purple  mist,  so 
frequently  seen  in  this  region  on  balmy  afternoons  in  the  spring  and 
autumn.  The  prison  bell  rang  as  I  was  turning  to  leave  the  scene,  and 
soon  a  troop  of  convicts,  dressed  in  the  felon's  garb,  and  accompanied  by 
overseers,  was  marched  towards  the  prison  and  taken  to  their  cells,  there 
to  be  fed  and  locked  up  for  the  night.     Their  costume  consists  of  a  short 


THE    HUDSON.  301 


to-it,  vest,  pantaloons,  and  cap,  made  of  white  kerseymere  cloth,  hroadly 
striped  with,  black.  The  stripes  pass  around  the  arms  and  legs,  but  are 
perpendicular  upon  the  body  of  the  coat. 

I  visited  the  prisons  early  the  following  morning,  in  company  with  one 
of  the  officers.  "We  first  went  through  that  in  which  the  women  are 
kept,  and  I  was  surprised  at  the  absence  of  aspects  of  crime  in  the 
appearance  of  most  of  the  convicts.  The  cells  were  all  open,  and  many 
of  tliem  displayed  evidences  of  taste  and  sentiment,  hardly  to  be 
suspected  in  criminals.  Fancy  needlework,  cheap  pictures,  and  other 
ornaments,  gave  some  of  the  cells  an  appearance  of  comfort ;  but  the 
wretchedly  narrow  spaces  into  which,  in  several  instances,  two  of  the 
convicts  are  placed  together  at  night,  because  of  a  want  of  more  cells, 
dispelled  the  temporary  illusion  that  prison  life  was  not  so  very  uncomfort- 
able after  aU.  The  household  drudgery  and  cookery  were  performed  by 
the  convicts,  chiefly  by  the  coloured  ones,  and  a  large  number  were 
employed  in  binding  hats  that  are  manufactured  in  the  men's  prison. 
They  sat  in  a  series  of  rows,  under  the  eyes  of  female  overseers,  silent, 
yet  not  very  sad.  Most  of  them  were  young,  many  of  them  interesting 
and  innocent  in  their  appearance,  and  two  or  three  really  beautiful.  The 
crime  of  a  majority  of  them  was  grand  larceny. 

There  was  one  woman  there,  six-and-thirty  years  of  age,  whose  case 
was  a  sad  one.  She  seemed  to  have  been,  through  life,  the  victim  of 
others'  crimes,  and  doomed  to  suff'er  more  for  the  sins  of  others  than  for 
her  own.  Years  ago,  a  friend  of  the  writer  arrived  at  New  York  at  an 
early  hour  one  morning,  and  was  led  by  curiosity  to  the  police  office, 
where  persons  arrested  by  watchmen  during  the  night  were  disposed  of 
at  dawn.  Whilst  there,  a  beautiful  young  girl,  shrinking  from  public 
gaze,  and  weeping  as  if  her  heart  was  breaking,  was  brought  in.  When 
her  turn  for  examination  came,  the  justice,  too  accustomed  to  the  sight  of 
vicious  persons  to  exercise  much  compassion,  accosted  her  rudely,  she 
having  been  picked  up  as  a  street  wanderer,  and  accused  of  vagrancy. 
She  told  a  simple,  touching  story  of  her  wrongs  and  misery.  Only  a 
mouth  before,  she  had  been  the  innocent  daughter  of  loving  parents  in 
Connecticut.  She  came  to  the  metropolis  to  visit  an  aunt,  whose  vicious 
son    invited    her   to    attend   him    to    the    theatre.       She    went    without 


302 


THE   HUDSON. 


suspicion,  took  some  refreshments  wliicli  he  offered  her  at  the  play, 
hecame  oblivious  withiu  half  an  hour  after  partaking  of  the  spiced  wine 
which  the  young  rillain  had  drugged,  and  before  morning  found  herself 
covered  with  shame  in  a  strange  house  in  a  strange  part  of  the  city. 
Utterly  east  down,  she  avoided  both  aunt  and  parents.  She  was  soon 
cast  away  by  her  wicked  cousin,  and  on  the  night  of  her  arrest  was 
wandering  alone,  without  shelter  or  hope.  She  was  compelled  to  bow  to 
her  fate,  whilst  the  law,  at  that  time,  could  not  touch  the  author  of  her 
degradation,  who  further  wronged  her  by  foulest  slander,  to  palliate  his 
own  wickedness.  Justice  was  not  then  so  kindly  disposed  towards  the 
erring  and  unfortunate  as  now.  There  was  no  Magdalen  refuge  for  her, 
and  the  magistrate,  with  almost  brutal  roughness,  reproached  her,  and 
sent  her  to  "  the  Island"*  for  six  months  as  a  vagrant.  The  gentleman 
who  witnessed  this  scene  became  possessed  of  her  subsequent  history. 

Associated  with  the  vile,  her  degradation  was  complete,  while  her 
innate  virtue  struggled  for  existence.  She  was  an  outcast  at  the  age  of 
seventeen.  Parental  affection,  yielding  to  the  stern  demands  of  social 
ethics,  sought  not  to  rescue  or  reform  the  child.  She  had  "  disgraced 
her  family,"  and  that  offence  was  sufficient  to  win  for  her  an  eternal 
exile.  "When  the  law  was  satisfied,  she  went  forth  with  virtuous  resolves, 
aud  sought  a  livelihood  through  menial  service.  Twice  she  was  pointed 
at  as  a  Magdaleu  and  convict,  and  sought  refuge  from  recognition  in 
other  places.  At  length  a  gleam  of  hope  beamed  upon  her.  She  was 
wooed  by  a  man  who  seemed  honest  and  true,  who  had  been  charmed  by 
her  beauty.  They  were  married.  She  was  again  allied  with  human 
sympathy,  and  was  happy.  Years  passed  by.  A  cloud  appeared.  She 
suspected  her  husband  to  be  in  league  with  burglars  and  counterfeiters. 
She  accused  him  iuquii-ingly,  and  he  confessed  his  guilt.  She  pleaded 
with  him  most  tenderly,  for  the  sake  of  herself  and  their  thi-ee  babes,  to 
abandon  his  course  of  life.  Her  words  were  ineffectual.  His  vile 
associates  became  bold.  His  house  became  the  receptacle  of  burglars' 
plunder,  and  the  head-quarters  of  counterfeiting.  To  her  the  world  was 
shut.     She  had  sympathy  only  with  her  husband  and  children.     She  had 


Blackwell's  Ishiml,  in  the  Kast  River,  which  will  le  noticed  hereafter. 


THE   HUDSON.  303 


not  courage  to  leave  the  loathed  atmosphere  of  crime  that  filled  her 
dwelling,  and  encounter  again  the  blasts  of  a  selfish  world.  She  became 
a  jjassive  participator  in  guilt.  Detection  soon  followed  transgression. 
She  was  arraigned  as  an  accomplice  of  her  husband  and  his  associates  in 
counterfeiting.  The  proof  was  clear,  and  conviction  followed.  Three 
years  before  my  visit  she  had  been  sent  to  the  state  prison  for  five  years, 
and  her  husband  for  ten  years.  They  have  never  met  since  hearing  their 
sentence.  Their  babes  were  taken  to  the  almshouse,  and  that  crushed 
woman  sat  desolate  within  the  prison  walls.  Meekly  she  performed  her 
daily  duties.  There  was  a  sweet  sadness  in  her  pale  face.  She  was  not 
a  criminal  in  the  eye  of  Divine  justice  ;  she  was  a  victim  to  be  pitied — 
the  wreck  of  an  innocent  and  beautiful  girl.  Surely  there  must  be  some- 
thing radically  wrong  in  the  constitution  of  our  society,  that  permits 
tender  flowers  to  be  thus  blasted  and  thus  neglected,  and  become  like 
worthless  -weeds,  to  be  trampled  upon  and  forgotten. 

In  the  prison  for  men,  and  in  the  workshops,  everything  is  carried  on 
with  the  most  perfect  order ;  every  kind  of  labour,  the  meals,  the  religious 
exercises  in  the  chapel,  are  all  conducted  according  to  the  most  rigid 
rules.  The  discipline  is  consequently  quite  perfect.  liefunnation,  not 
m.evo\j  punishment,  is  the  great  aim,  and  the  history  of  the  prison  attests 
the  success  of  the  effort.  Severe  punishments  are  becoming  more  and  more 
rare,  and  the  terrible  Shower  Bath,  which  has  been  so  justly  condemned  by 
the  humane,  is  now  seldom  used,  and  then  in  the  presence  of  the  prison 
physician.  Only  when  all  other  means  for  forcing  obedience  have  failed, 
is  this  horrid  punishment  inflicted.  It  is  admitted,  I  believe,  that  the 
ilount  Pleasant  or  Sing  Sing  prison  is  one  of  the  best  conducted 
penitentiaries  in  the  world. 

On  returning  to  the  village  across  the  fields  northward  of  Mount 
Pleasant,  I  obtained  a  full  view  of  Teller's  or  C'roton  Point,  which  divides 
Tappan  from  Haverstraw  Bay.  It  is  almost  two  miles  in  length,  and  was 
called  Se-nas-qua  by  the  Indians,  and  by  the  English,  Sarah's  Point,  in 
honour  of  Sarah,  wife  of  William  Teller,  who  purchased  it  of  the  Indians 
for  a  barrel  of  rum  and  twelve  blankets.  It  was  called  Teller's  Point 
until  within  a  few  years,  when  the  name  of  Croton  was  given  to  it.  !N"ear 
its  extremity,  within  a  pleasant,  embowered  lawn,  stood  the  Italian  villa 


304 


THE   HUDSON. 


of  E.  T.  Underliill,  M.D.,  who  was  sixth  in  descent  from  the  famous 

Captain  Underhill,  a  leader  in  tlic  Indian  wars  of  New  England.  The 
Point  i^'as  owned  by  himself  and  brother,  both  of  whom  had  extensive 
vineyards  and  luxuriant  orchards.  They  had  about  eighty  acres  covered 
with  the  Isabella  and  Catawba  grape  vine,  sixty  of  which  belonged  to  the 
doctor.  They  also  raised  fine  apples  and  melons  in  great  abundance. 
From  our  point  of  view,  near  Sing  Sing  landing,  the  village  of  Haverstraw 
is  seen  in  the  vista  between  Croton  Point  and  the  High  Torn  Mountain  on 
the  left. 


CBOTOX  POINT,  yiWM   bl.NU  SING. 


It  was  now  the  first  day  of  March,  and  very  warm  ;  the  surface  of  the 
river  was  unrufiled  by  a  breeze.  Knowing  how  boisterous  and  blustering 
this  first  spring  month  generally  is,  I  took  advantage  of  the  fine  weather, 
and  crossed  Tappan  Bay  to  Rockland  Lake  village  (formerly  Slaughter's 
Landing),  opposite  Sing  Sing,  the  most  extensive  ice-station  on  the  river. 
After  considerable  delay,  I  procured  a  boat  and  oarsman — the  former  very 
leaky,  and  the  latter  very  accommodating.  The  bay  is  here  between  two 
and  three  miles  wide.     We  passed  a  few  masses  of  floating  ice  and  some 


g^I? 


sailing  vessels,  and  at  little  past  noon  landed  at  Eockland,  where  the 
Knickerhocker  Ice  Company  had  a  wharf  and  barges,  and  a  largo  inclined- 
plane  railway,  down  which  ice,  brought  from,  the  adjacent  lake,  was  sent 
to  the  vessels  in  the  river. 


EOCKLAND,   OR  SLAVGHTERER  S  LANDIXCf, 


It  was  a  weary  way  up  the  steep  shore  to  the  village  and  the  lake,  on 
the  borders  of  a  high  and  well-cultivated  valley,  half  a  mile  from  the  river. 
This  is  the  famous  Rockland  Lake,  whose  congealed  waters  have  been  so 


306 


THE   HUDSON. 


long  familiar  to  the  thirsty  dwellers  in  the  metropolis.  It  is  a  lovely 
sheet  of  water,  one  hundred  and  fifty  feet  ahove  the  river.  On  its  south- 
eastern borders,  excepting  where  the  village  and  ice-houses  skirt  it,  are 
steep,  rugged  shores,  "Westward,  a  fertile  country  stretches  away  many 
a  mile  to  rough  hills  and  blue  mountains.  The  lake  is  an  irregular  ellipse 
in  form,  half  a  mile  in  length,  and  tliree-fourths  of  a  mile  at  its  greatest 
width,  and  covers  about  five  hundred  acres.  It  is  supplied  by  springs  in 
its  own  bosom,  and  clear  mountain  brooks,  and  forms  the  head  waters  of 
the  Hackensack  I'iver,  which  flows  through  New  Jersey,  and  reaches  the 


EOCKLAM)  LAKK. 


salt  water  in  Newark  Bay.  Near  its  outlet,  upon  a  grassy  peninsula,  is 
the  residence  of  Moses  G.  Leonard,  Esq.,  seen  in  the  picture  ;  and  in  the 
distance,  from  our  point  of  view,  is  seen  the  peak  of  the  great  Tom 
Mountain,  back  of  Haverstraw.  Along  the  eastern  margin  of  the  lake 
were  extensive  buildings  for  the  storeage  of  ice  in  winter,  at  which  time 
a  thousand  men  were  sometimes  employed.  The  crop  averaged  nearly 
two  hundred  thousand  tons  a-year ;  and  during  the  warm  season,  one 
hundred  men  were  employed  in  conveying  it  to  the  river,  and  fifteen 


THE    HUDSON. 


307 


barges  were  used  in  transporting  it  to  New  York,  for  distribution  there, 
and  exportation. 

"We  crossed  the  bay  to  Croton  Point,  visited  the  villa  and  vineyards  of 


MOUTH  OF  THE   CROTON. 


Doctor  Undeihill,  and  then  rowed  up  Croton  Bay  to  the  mouth  of  the 
river,  passing,  on  our  way,  under  the  drawbridge  of  the  Hudson  River 
Railway.     It   was   late   in   the    afternoon.      There   was   a   remarkable 


308 


THE   HUDSON. 


stillness  and  dreamy  repose  in  the  atmosphere,  and  we  glided  almost 
noiselessly  up  the  bay,  in  company  with  two  or  three  duck-hunters,  in 
their  little  cockles.  The  tide  was  ebbing,  and  as  we  approached  the 
mouth  of  the  Croton,  the  current  became  more  and  more  rapid,  until  we 
found  ourselves  in  a  shallow  rift  abreast  the  "Van  Cortlandt  Manor  House, 
unable  to  proceed.  After  vain  efforts  of  our  united  strength  to  stem  the 
current,  the  boatman  landed  me  on  the  southern  shore  of  the  stream. 
After  satisfying  his  extortionate  demand  of  about  the  price  of  three  fares 
for  his  services,  I  dismissed  him,  with  a  strong  desire  never  again  to  fall 
into  his  hands ;  and  then  clambered  up  the  rough  bank  by  the  margin  of 
a  brook,  and  made  my  way  to  the  "  post  road,"  a  most  picturesque  highway 
along  the  lofty  banks  of  the  Croton.  When  near  the  "  High  Bridge,"  at 
the  old  head  of  boat  navigation,  I  obtained  a  most  interesting  view  of  the 
Mouth  of  the  Croton,  including  Dover  Kill  Island  near,  the  railway- 
bridge  in  the  distance,  and  the  high  hills  on  the  western  shore  of  the 
Hudson  in  the  extreme  distance.  Tlie  scenery  thereabout  is  both 
picturesque  and  beautiful,  and  such  is  its  character  to  the  very  sources 
of  this  famous  stream  eastward  of  the  Pawling  Mountains,  whose  clear 
waters  supply  the  city"  of  New  York  with  wholesome  beverage. 

The  ancient  name  of  the  Croton  was  Kitch-a-wan,  signifying  a  large 
and  swift  current.  The  Dutch  called  it  Croton  in  memory  of  an  Indian 
Saehem  of  that  name,  -whose  habitation  was  on  the  northern  border  of  the 
bay,  near  the  neck,  a  little  below  the  mouth  of  the  river.  Its  sources  are 
among  the  hills  of  Putnam  and  Duchess,  and  it  has  five  considerable 
tributaries,  all  of  mountain  birth.  "When  the  authorities  of  the  city  of 
New  York  were  seeking  sources  of  ample  supply  of  pure  water,  their 
attention  was  early  called  to  this  stream.  Commissioners  reported  in 
favour  of  its  use,  though  far  away;  and  in  May,  1837,  the  construction  of 
an  aqueduct  from  a  point  six  miles  from  its  mouth  to  the  metropolis  was 
begun.  At  the  head  of  the  aqueduct  a  dam  was  constructed,  for  the 
purpose  of  forming  a  fountain  reservoir.  At  the  beginning  of  1841  a 
flood,  produced  by  a  protracted  rain-storm  and  melting  snows,  swept 
away  the  dam,  and  carried  with  it,  riverward,  a  quantity  of  earth  and 
gravel,  sufficient  to  half  fill  the  beautiful  Croton  Bay.  The  dam- was 
immediately  rebuilt,  at  greater  altitude,  and  a  lake  was  produced,  almost 


% 


THE   HUDSON. 


309 


six  miles  in  length,  containing  about  500,000,000  gallons.  It  is  166  feet 
above  mean  tide-water  at  New  York,  and  pours  into  the  aqueduct  from 
40,000,000  to  50,000,000  gallons  every  twenty-four  hours.  iSTot  having 
time  to  visit  the  fountain  reservoir,  I  have  availed  myself  of  the  pencil 
services  of  a  friend,  in  giving  a  sketch  of  the  dam  from  a  point  just 
below  it. 

The  Croton  aqueduct  runs  parallel  with  the  Hudson,   at  the  mean 
distance  of  half  a  mile  from  it  throughout  its  entire  length.     Its  course  is 


CROTOS   DAM. 


marked  by  culverts  and  arches  of  solid  masonry,  and  its  lino  may  bo 
observed  at  a  distance  by  white  stone  towers,  about  fifteen  feet  in  height, 
placed  at  intervals  of  a  mile.  These  are  ventilators  of  the  aqueduct ; 
some  of  them  are  quite  ornamental,  as  in  the  case  of  the  one  at  Sing  Sing, 
others  are  simple  round  towers,  and  every  third  one  has  a  square  base, 
with  a  door  by  which  a  person  may  enter  the  aqueduct.  At  the  top  of 
each  is  an  iron  screen,  to  prevent  substances  from  being  cast  into  the 


310 


THE    HUDSON. 


ventilators.  Our  little  group  shows  the  difFcrent  forms  of  these  towers, 
which  present  a  feature  in  the  landscape  on  the  eastern  shore  of  the  river, 
to  voyagers  on  the  Hudson.  This  great  work  was  completed,  and  the 
water  opened  to  the  use  of  the  inhabitants  of  Now  Tork,  in  the  autumn 
of  1842.  Its  cost  was  about  $12,000,000.  We  shall  meet  with  it 
frequently  in  our  future  tour  towards  the  city. 

The  "  High  Bridge  "  over  the  Croton,  at  the  old  head  of  the  navigation, 
was  a  wooden,  rickety  structure,  destined  soon  to  fall  in  disuse  and 
absolute    decay,    because    of    a    substantial   new    bridge,    then    being 


\'KNTILATURS. 


constructed  across  the  head  of  the  bay,  almost  a  mile  below,  by  which  the 
route  from  Croton  to  Sing  Sing  would  be  much  shortened.  Here  was  the 
"Croton  Bridge"  of  revolutionary  times,  frequently  mentioned  in 
connection  with  military  movements  between  Now  York  and  the  High- 
lands ;  and  here  is  now  the  scene  of  most  important  experiments  in  the 
production  of  malleable  iron  from  the  ore,  by  a  simple  process,  which,  if 
successful,  would  produce  a  marked  change  in  the  iron  manufacture.  It 
is  a  process  of  deoxidizing  iron  ore  in  a  heated  hollow  screw,  out  of  which, 
when  the  process  is  completed,  it  drops  into  the  furnace,  avoids  all  fluxes, 
and  comes  out  "blooms"  of  the  finest  iron,     Mr.  Eogers,  the  inventor. 


THE   HUDSON. 


311 


claimed,  that  by  this  process  there  would  be  a  saving  of  from  eight  to 
twelve  dollars  a  ton  in  the  production  of  iron — a  matter  of  great 
importance  to  such  isolated  districts  as  that  of  the  Adirondack  works  at 
the  sources  of  the  Hudson  already  mentioned.  It  was  from  Bayley's 
rolling  mill,  at  the  foot  of  the  rapids  in  the  Croton,  just  above  the  old 
High  Bridge,  where  these  experiments  were  going  on,  that  I  made  the 
sketch  of  that  dilapidated  affair,  just  at  sunset. 

Crossing  the  bridge,  I  strolled  down,  the  right  bank  of  the  Croton,  along 


HIGH  HBlU(iK   VYLll    ilil:.  LKUiO-V. 


the  high  margin  of  the  stream,  to  the  Van  Cortlandt  Manor  House, 
passing  the  old  Ferry  House  on  the  way,  where  a  party  of  New  York 
levies,  under  Captain  Daniel  Williams,  were  surprised  by  some  British 
horsemen  in  the  winter  of  1782.  At  the  entrance  gate  to  the  mansion 
grounds,  at  twilight,  I  met  Colonel  Pierre  Van  Cortlandt,  the  present 
proprietor,  and  accepted  his  cordial  invitation  to  partake  of  the  hospitalities 
of  Ms  house  for  the  night. 

The  Van  Cortlandt  Manor  House  stands  near  the  shore  of  Croton  Bay. 
It  was   erected   at   the   beginning  of  the   last   century,   by  John  Van 


312 


THE   HUDSON. 


Cortlandt,  eldest  son  of  the  first  lord  of  the  manor,  and  is  now  more  than 
one  hundred  and  fifty  years  old.  Orloft'  Stevenson  Van  Cortlandt,  father 
of  the  first  proprietor  of  this  estate,  was  a  lineal  descendant  of  the  Dukes 
of  Courland,  in  Eussia.  His  ancestors  emigrated  to  Holland,  when 
deprived  of  the  Duchy  of  Courland.  The  family  name  was  Stevens,  or 
Stevensen,  van  (or  from)  Courland.  They  adopted  the  latter  as  a 
surname,  the  true  orthography  of  which,  in  Dutch,  is  Korte  (short),  and 


VAN  .COBTLAKDT  MANOB  HOUSE. 


landl  (land),  a  term  expressingthe  form  of  the  ancient  Duchy  of  Courland. 
Orloff  emigrated  to  America,  and  settled  in  New  Amsterdam  (New  York), 
and  in  1697  his  son  Stephen  purchased  the  large  estate  on  the  Hudson, 
afterwards  known  as  the  Van  Cortlandt  Manor.  Ey  intermarriages,  the 
Van  Cortlandts  are  connected  with  nearly  all  of  the  leading  families  of 
New  York — the  Schuylers,  Beekmans,  Van  Eenselaers,  De  Peysters,  Do 
Lancys,  Bayards,  &c.     The  Manor  House  was  huilt  of  heavy  stone ;  and 


THE   HUDSON.  313 


the  thick  walls  were  pierced  with  loopholes  for  musketry  to  be  used  ia 
defence  against  the  Indians.  It  has  been  somewhat  changed  in  aspect, 
by  covering  the  round  stone  with  stucco.  Its  front,  graced  by  a  pleasant 
lawn,  commands  an  extensive  view  of  the  bay,  and  of  the  Hudson  beyond. 
In  that  bay,  under  the  shelter  of  Croton  Point,  Hendriok  Hudson 
anchored  the  Half-Moon,  on  the  evening  of  the  first  of  October,  1609; 
and  such  a  resort  were  these  waters  for  canvas-back  ducks,  and  other 
water-fowl,  that,  as  early  as  1683,  Governor  Dongan  came  there  to  enjoy 
the  sport  of  fowling.  There,  too,  great  quantities  of  shad  were  caught. 
But  its  glory  is  departed.  The  flood  of  1841,  that  swept  away  the  Croton 
Dam,  almost  filled  the  bay  with  earth  ;  it  is  accumulating  there  every 
hour ;  and,  in  the  course  of  a  few  years,  the  Van  Cortlandt  estate  will 
have  many  acres  of  fine  meadow  land  added  to  it,  where  once  large  vessels 
might  ride  at  anchor. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 


HE  Van  Cortlandt  mansion,  of  which  a  sketch  appears 
in  the  last  Chapter,  is  clustered  with  historic  associa- 
tions. It  was  the  summer  home  of  the  master,  whose 
town  residence  was  a  stately  one  for  the  colonial 
times.  There,  at  early,  as  well  as  at  later,  periods, 
the  wealthy  and  the  high-horn  of  the  land  frequently  assemhled 
as  guests.  From  its  hroad  piazza  the  famous  "VVhitefield  preached 
to  a  large  audience  upon  the  lawn.  There,  in  1774,  Governor 
Tryon,  and  Edmund  Fanning,  his  secretary,  came  on  a  mission 
of  bribery  to  General  Van  Cortlandt,  who  had  espoused  the  cause  of  the 
colonists.  They  offered  him  lands  and  titles  for  his  allegiance  to  the 
crown,  hut  they  were  refused.  Under  that  roof  the  illustrious  "Washington 
was  a  frequent  guest  when  the  army  was  in  that  vicinity ;  and  the  parlour 
was  once  honoured  by  the  presence  of  the  immortal  Franklin.  There 
may  be  seen  many  mementoes  of  the  past :  the  horns  of  a  stag  killed  on 
the  manor,  when  deer  ran  wild  there ;  the  buttons  from  the  yager  coat 
worn  by  one  of  the  captors  of  Andre  ;  a  box  made  of  the  wood  of  the 
£ndeatour,  the  ship  in  which  Cook  navigated  the  globe,  et  cetera. 

On  the  morning  after  my  arrival,  accompanied  by  Mrs.  Van  Cortlandt, 
I  rode  to  the  village  of  Croton,  a  mile  distant,  to  visit  one  of  twin  sisters, 
who  were  ninety  years  old  in  August,  I860.*  On  our  way  we  turned 
into  the  cemetery  of  the  Van  Cortlandt  family,  upon  a  beautiful  point  of 
land,  commanding  an  extensive  view  of  the  Hudson  southward.  A  little 
west  of  the  cemetery,  at  the  neck  of  land  which  connects  Croton  Point 
with  the  main,  stood  the  old  fort  or  castle  of  Kitch-a-ican,  said  to  have 
been  one  of  the  most  ancient  Indian  foitresses  south  of  the  Highlands. 
It  was  built  by  the  Sachem  Croton,  when  he  assembled  his  parties  for 


*  Tliese  sisters  were  living  at  the  beginning  of  1S66. 


THE   HUDSON. 


315 


hunting  or  war.  In  a  beautLful  nook,  a  little  east  of  the  site  of  the  fort, 
on  the  borders  of  Haunted  Hollow,  is  the  Kitch-a-ivan  burying-ground. 
Around  tliis  locality  hoTcrs  the  memory  of  many  a  weird  story  of  the 
early  times,  when  the  superstitious  people  believed  that  they  often  saw, 
in  the  groves  and  glens  there,  the  forms  of  the  departed  red  men.  They 
called  them  the  Walking  Sachems  of  Teller's  Point. 

"We  visited  one  of  the  twin  sisters  at  Croton,  Mrs.  Miriam  "Williams. 
Her  memory  of  long-past  events  seemed  very  faithful,  but  the  mind  of 
her  sister  had  almost  perished  with  age.  They  had  both  lived  in  that 
vicinity  since  their  birth,  having  married  and  settled  there  in  early  life. 
Mrs.  "Williams  had  a  perfect  recollection  of  "Washington,  when  he  was 
quartered  with  the  army  near  Verplanck's  Point.  On  one  occasion,  she 
said,  he  dismounted  in  front  of  her  father's  house,  and  asked  for.  some 
food.  As  he  entered,  the  twins  were  standing  near  the  door.  Placing 
his  hands  upon  their  heads,  he  said,  "You  are  as  alike  as  two  eggs.  May 
you  have  long  life."  He  entered  with  her  father,  and  the  childi-en  peeped 
curiously  in  at  the  door.  A  morsel  of  food  and  a  cup  of  cold  water  was 
placed  upon  the  table,  when  Washington  stepped  forward,  laid  his  hand 
upon  the  board,  closed  his  eyes,  and  reverently  asked  a  blessing,  their 
father  having,  meanwhile,  raised  his  hat  from  his  head.  "And  here," 
said  Mrs.  "Williams,  pointing  to  a  small  oval  table  near  her,  "  is  the  very 
table  at  which  that  good  man  asked  a  blessing." 

From  the  little  village  of  Croton,  or  Collaberg  Landing,  I  rode  to  the 
dwelling  of  a  friend  (James  Cockroft,  Esq.),  about  two  miles  northward, 
passing  on  the  way  the  old  house  of  Tellar  (now  Moodie),  where  the 
incident  just  i-elated  occurred.  Accompanied  by  Mr.  Cockroft  and  his 
neighbour,  J.  "W.  Frost,  Esq.,  I  climbed  to  the  summit  of  Prickly  Pear 
Hill  (so  called  from  the  fact  that  a  species  of  cactus,  called  Prickly  Pear, 
grows  there  abundantly),  almost  five  hundred  feet  above  the  river,  from 
which  may  be  obtained  the  most  extensive  and  interesting  views  in  all 
that  region.  From  no  point  on  the  Hudson  can  be  seen,  at  a  glance,  such 
a  cluster  of  historic  localities,  as  from  this  eminence.  Here  Washington 
was  encamped  in  1782,  and  made  this  pinnacle  his  chief  observatory.  At 
one  sweep  of  the  vision  may  be  seen  the  lofty  ranges  of  the  Highlands, 
and  the  Fish  Kill  Mountains,  with  all  the  intervening  country  adjacent 


316 


THE    HUDSON. 


to  Peek's  Kill,  Verplanck's  and  Stony  Points,  the  theatres  of  important 
military  events  during  the  war  for  independence ;  Haverstraw,  where 
Arnold  and  Andie  had  their  conference ;  Teller's  Point,  off  which  the 
Vulture  lay,  and  from  which  she  receiycd  a  cannonading  that  drove  her 
down  the  river ;  King's  Ferry,  where  Andre  crossed  the  Hudson ;  the 
place  of  Pine's  Bridge  on  the  Croton,  where  he  was  suspected ;  Tari-ytown, 
where  he  was  captured,  and  the  long  wharf  of  Piermont,  near  Tappan, 
where  he  was  executed.     All  of  these,  with  the  villages  on  the  eastern 


\lh.Vi    moM  PRKKLl    PtAK  UILL 

shore  of  the  Hudson,  from  Crugcr's  to  York  Island,  may  be  seen  from 
this  hill.  Before  it  lies  Haverstraw  Bay,  the  widest  expanse  of  the 
Hudson,  with  all  its  historic  and  legendary  associations,  which  limited 
space  forbids  us  to  portray.  Here  the  fresh  and  salt  water  usually  con- 
tend most  equally  for  the  mastery;  and  here  the  porpoise,*  a  sea- water 


•  Porpoise  communis;  genus  P/iocicna,  supposed  to  be  the  Tursio  uf  Pliny.  It  is  from  four  to  eight 
feet  in  length,  nearly  of  a  black  colour  above,  and  whitish  beneath.  They  are  found  in  aU  our  northern 
seas  and  bays.  They  swim  in  shoals,  and  pursue  otlier  fishes  up  bays  and  rivers,  with  the  avidity  of 
hotmds  after  game.  In  fine  weather  they  leap,  roll,  and  tumble,  in  great  glee,  especially  in  late  spring 
time.    They  j-ield  a  very  fine  oil. 


THE   HUDSON. 


317 


fish,  is  often  seen  in  large  numbers,  sporting  in  the  summer  sun.  Here, 
in  the  spring,  vast  numbers  of  shad  are  caught  while  on  their  way  to 
spawning  places  in  fresh-water  coves ;  and  here,  at  all  seasons,  most 
delicious  fish  may  be  taken  in  great  abundance.  All  tilings  considered, 
this  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  points  for  a  summer  residence  to  be 
found  on  the  Hudson. 

The  highways,  on  land  and  water,  from  the  Croton  to  the  Spuyten 
Duyvil  Creek,  at  the  head  of  York  Island,  pass  through  exceedingly 
beautiful  and  i>icturcsque  scenery,  made  classical  to  the  Ameiican  mind 


Li^jM;^MA 


xj^t£f§0k 


.■r.S&^'t^S. 


|ii!V3^^' 


■iUE  POBl'OiSE. 


because  of  most  interesting  historical  associations.  Ou  the  west  side  of 
the  Hudson,  seen  by  the  traveller  on  road,  railway,  or  river,  is  a  bold 
mountain  shore,  having  a  few  cultivated  slopes  and  pleasant  villages  as 
far  down  as  the  lower  extremity  of  Tappan  Bay.  From  that  point  there 
are  presented,  for  about  twenty  miles  southward,  perpendicular  walls  of 
rock,  with  bases  in  buttress  form,  called  the  Palisades,  fronting  imme- 
diately on,  and  rising  several  hundred  feet  above,  the  river.  On  the  east 
the  voyager  sees  a  beautiful,  high,  undulating  country,  well  cultivated, 
and  sprinkled  with  villages  and  hamlets. 


318 


THE    HUDSON. 


The  drive  from  Sing  Sing  to  King's  Bridge  at  Spuyten  Duyvil  Creek, 
along  the  old  post-road,  is  attractive  at  all  seasons  of  the  year,  but  more 
especially  in  spring  and  early  summer,  when  the  trees  arc  in  leaf,  because 
of  the  ever-varying  aspects  of  the  landscape.  Fine  mansions  and  villa 
residences  are  seen  on  every  side,  where,  only  a  few  years  ago,  good  taste 
was  continually  offended  by  uncouth  farmhouses,  built  for  utility  only. 


GENEKAL   H'AUit'te  MA^S1U^  . 


without  a  single  thought  of  harmony  or  beauty.     Now  all  is  changed, 
and  the  eye  is  as  continually  pleased. 

One  of  the  finest  of  the  older  country  seats  in  this  region  was  the 
mansion  of  General  Aaron  "Ward,  overlooking  the  village  of  Sing  Sing, 
and  commanding  a  very  extensive  view  of  the  Hudson  and  its  distant 
sliores.    General  Ward  is  one  of  the  most  distinguished  men  in  "Westchester 


THE   HUDSON.  319 


County,  and  is  descended  from  an  early  settler  in  that  region.  He  was 
an  officer  in  the  American  army  during  the  war  with  Great  Britain  in 
1812 — 15,  and  at  its  close  conducted  the  first  detachment  of  the  British 
prisoners  from  the  States  to  Canada.  Law  was  his  chosen  profession, 
and  in  1825  he  hecame  a  law-maker,  by  election  to  the  Lower  House  of 
the  National  Congress.  He  was  an  active  and  efficient  worker,  and  the 
satisfaction  of  his  constituency  was  certified  by  their  retaining  him  as 
their  representative,  by  re-election,  twelve  out  of  eighteen  consecutive 
years.  He  assisted  in  framing  the  present  constitution  of  the  State  of 
'New  York,  in  1846,  and  since  then  has  declined  invitations  to  public 
service.  During  the  years  1859  and  1860,  he  visited  Egypt  and  the 
Holy  Land.  His  narrative  of  his  journey,  published  under  the  title  of 
"  Around  the  Pyramids,"  is  considered  one  of  the  most  truthful  produc- 
tions of  its  kind  from  the  pen  of  an  American.  Sing  Sing  owes  much  to 
General  Ward's  enterprise  and  public  spirit,  and  he  is  sincerely  honoured 
and  beloved  in  the  community  where  he  resides. 

Pleasant  residences — some  embowered,  others  standing  out  in  the 
bright  sunlight  near  groves  and  woods — delight  the  eye  more  and  more  as 
we  approach  the  large  village  of  Tarrytown,  twenty-seven  miles  from 
New  York.  Of  these  the  most  conspicuous  between  the  little  hamlet  of 
Scarborough,  below  Sing  Sing  and  Tarrytown,  is  that  of  Mr.  Aspinwall, 
a  wealthy  New  York  merchant.  Near  it  was  the  residence  of  General 
James  "Watson  Webb,  then  the  veteran  editor  and  proprietor  of  the  New 
York  Courier  and  Inquirer,  and  well  known,  personally,  and  by  reputation, 
in  both  hemispheres  as  a  gentleman  of  rare  abilities  as  a  journalist.  At 
the  beginning  of  the  Civil  "War,  General  "Webb  was  appointed  resident 
minister  at  the  court  of  Pedro  II.,  emperor  of  Brazil,  in  which  position 
he  continued  during  the  entire  struggle. 

Approaching  Tarrytown,  we  observe  upon  the  left  of  the  highway  an 
already  populous  cemetery,  covering  the  crown  and  slopes  of  a  gentle  hill. 
Near  its  base  is  an  ancient  church,  and  a  little  beyond  it  flows  a  clear 
stream  of  water,  which  the  Indians  called  Po-can-te-co,  signifying  a  "  run 
between  two  hills."  It  makes  its  way  in  a  swift  current  from  the  back 
country,  between  a  hundred  hills,  presenting  a  thousand  scenes  of 
singular  beauty  in  its  course.     The  Dutch  named  it  Slaeperigli  Saven 


(tTSri7BESITr] 


320 


THE   HUDSON. 


Kill,  or  Sleepy  Haven  Creek,  and  the  valley  in  the  vicinity  of  the  old 
church,  through  which  it  flowed,  Slaeperigh  Uol,  or  Sleepy  Hollow,  the 
scene  of  Washington  Irving's  famous  legend  of  that  name. 

The  little  old  church  is  a  curiosity.  It  was  built,  says  an  inscription 
upon  a  small  marble  tablet  on  its  front,  by  "Frederic  Philips  and 
Catharine  Van  Cortland,  his  wife,  in  1699,"  and  is  the  oldest  church 
edifice  existing  in  the  State  of  New  York.  It  was  built  of  brick  and 
stone,  the  formpr  imported  from  Holland  for  the  purpose.    Over  its  little 


AXtlEXT  UUTCH   CllUf.CU. 


spire  still  turns  the  flag-shaped  vane  of  iron,  in  wliich  is  cut  the  monogram 
of  its  founder  (VF  in  combination,  his  name  being  spelt  in  Dutch, 
Vcdryck  Flypsen) ;  and  in  the  little  tower  hangs  the  ancient  bell, 
bearing  the  inscription  in  Latin,  "7/"  God  le  fur  us,  who  can  he  against  us9 
1685."  The  pulpit  and  communion  table  were  also  imported  from 
Holland.  The  former  was  long  since  destroyed  by  the  iconoclastic  hand 
of  "improvement." 

At  this  quiet  old  church  is  the  opening  of  Sleepy  Hollow,  upon  the 
shores  of  the  Hudson,  and  near  it  is  a  rustic  bridge  that  crosses  the 


THE   HUDSON. 


321 


Po-can-te-co,  a  little  below  the  one  made  famous  in  Irving's  legend  by  an 
amusing  incident.*     In  this  vicinity,  according  to  the  legend,  Ichabod 


SLEEPY  HOLLOW  BRIDtiE. 


Crane,  a   Connecticut   schoolmaster,   instructed  "tough,  wrong-headed, 


•  "  Over  a  deep,  black  part  o£  the  stream,  not  far  from  the  diureh,"  says  Mr.  Irving,  in  Ilia  "  Legend 
of  Sleepy  Hollow,"  "  was  fonnerly  thrown  a  wooden  bridge  :  the  road  tliat  led  to  it,  and  the  bridge 
itself,  were  Illicitly  shaded  by  overhanging  trees,  wluch  cast  a  gloom  about  it  even  in  the  daylime,  bat 
occasioned  a  fearful  darkness  at  night." 

T    T 


THE   HUDSON. 


broad-skirted,  Dutch  urchins"  in  the  rudiments  of  learning.  He  was 
also  the  singing-master  of  the  neighbourhood.  Not  far  off  lived  old 
Baltus  Van  Tassel,  a  well-to-do  farmer,  whose  house  was  called  JJ'olfeii's 
Roost.  He  had  a  blooming  and  only  daughter  named  Katrina,  and 
Ichabod  was  her  tutor  in  psalmody,  training  her  voice  to  mingle  sweetly 
with  those  of  the  choir  which  he  led  at  Sabbath-day  worship  in  the 
Sleepy  Hollow  Church.  Ichabod  "had  a  soft  and  foolish  heart  toward 
the  sex."  He  fell  in  love  with  Katrina.  He  found  a  rival  in  his  suit  in 
stalwart,  bony  Brom  Van  Brunt,  commonly  known  as  Brom  Bones. 
Jealousies  arose,  and  the  Dutchman  resolved  to  drive  the  Yankee  school- 
master from  the  country. 

Strange  stories  of  ghosts  in  Sleepy  Hollow  were  believed  by  all,  and  by 
none  more  implicitly  than  Ichabod.  The  chief  goblin  seen  there  was 
that  of  a  Hessian  trooper,  whose  head  had  been  carried  away  by  a  cannon 
ball.  This  spectre  was  known  all  over  the  country  as  "  The  Headless 
Horseman  of  Sleepy  Hollow." 

Ichabod  was  invited  to  a  social  evening  party  at  the  house  of  Van 
Tassel.  He  went  with  alacrity,  and  borrowed  a  lean  horse  called  Gun- 
powder for  the  journey.  Brom  Bones  was  also  there.  When  the 
company  broke  up,  Ichabod  lingered  to  have  a  few  words  with  Katrina. 
He  then  bestrode  Gunpowder,  and  started  for  home.  When  within  half 
a.  mile  of  the  old  cliurch,  a  horse  and  rider,  huge,  black,  and  mysterious, 
suddenly  appeared  by  his  side.  The  rider  was  headless,  and  to  the 
horror  of  the  pedagogue  it  was  discovered  that  he  carried  his  head  in  his 
hand,  on  the  pommel  of  his  saddle.  Ichabod  was  half  dead  with  feai\ 
He  urged  Gunpowder  forward  to  escape  the  demon,  but  in  vain.  The 
licadlcss  horseman  followed.  The  walls  of  the  old  church  appeared  in 
the  dim  starlight  of  the  midnight  hour.  The  log  bridge,  in  the  deep 
shadows  of  the  trees,  was  near.  "  If  I  can  but  reach  that  bridge," 
thought  Ichabod,  "  I  shall  be  Safe."  Just  then  he  heard  the  black  steed 
panting  and  blowing  close  behind  him  ;  he  even  fancied  that  he  felt  his 
hot  breath.  Another  convulsive  kick  in  the  ribs  and  old  Gunpowder 
sprang  upon  the  bridge :  he  thundered  over  the  resounding  planks ;  he 
gained  the  opposite  side ;  and  now  Ichabod  cast  a  look  behind  to  see  if 
his  pursuer  would  vanish,  according  to  rule,  in  a  flash  of  fire  and  brim- 


THE   HTTDSON.  323 


stone.  Just  then  lie  saw  the  goblin  rising  in  his  stirrups,  and  in  the  very 
act  of  hurling  his  head  at  bim.  Ichabod  endeavoured  to  dodge  the 
horrible  missile,  but  too  late  ;  it  encountered  his  cranium  with  a  terrible 
crash  ;  he  was  tumbled  headlong  into  the  dust,  and  Gunpowder,  the  black 
steed,  and  the  goblin  rider,  passed  like  a  whirlwind.  A  shattered 
pumpkin  was  found  in  the  road  the  next  day,  and  Brom  Jones  not 
long  afterwards  led  Katrina  Van  Tassel  to  the  altar  as  his  bride. 
Ichabod  was  never  heard  of  afterwards.  The  people  always  believed  he 
had  been  spirited  away  by  the  Headless  Horseman  of  Sleepy  Hollow, 
who,  on  that  occasion,  some  knowing  ones  supposed  to  have  been  a  being 
no  more  ghostly  than  Brom  Bones  himself. 

Let  us  climb  over  this  stile  by  the  corner  of  the  old  church,  into  the 
yard  where  so  many  of  the  pilgrims  of  earth  are  sleeping.  Here  are 
mossy  stones  with  half  obliterated  epitaphs,  marking  the  graves  of  many 
early  settlers,  among  whom  is  one,  upon  whose  monumental  slab  it  is 
recorded,  that  he  lived  until  he  was  "  one  hundred  and  three  years  old," 
and  had  one  hundred  and  twenty-four  children  and  grandchildren  at  the 
time  of  his  death !  Let  us  pass  on  up  this  narrow  winding  path,  and 
cross  the  almost  invisible  boundary  between  the  old  "graveyaj-d"  and 
the  new  "  cemetery."  Here,  well  up  towards  the  summit  of  the  hill  near 
the  "  receiving  vault,"  upon  a  beautiful  sunny  slope,  is  an  enclosure 
made  of  iron  bars  and  privet  hedge,  with  open  gate,  inviting  entrance. 
There  in  line  stand  several  slabs  of  white  marble,  only  two  feet  in  height, 
at  the  head  of  as  many  oblong  hillocks,  covered  with  turf  and  budding 
spring  flowers.     L^pon  one  of  these,  near  the  centre,  wc  read  : — 

WASHINGTOS, 

BON  OF 

WILLIAM  AND 

S-tRAH    S.     lEVIKG, 

DIED 

NOV.  23,  lSo9, 

AUED   76  YEARS   7  MO. 

AHD  25  DATS. 

This   is  the  grave  of  the   immortal   Geoffrey  Crayon  I  *     Upon   it  lie 

*  111  Uie  Episcopal  Church  at  Tan-ytown,  in  whicli  Mr.  Irving  was  a  communicant  for  many  years,  a 
smaU  marble  tablet  has  been  placed  by  the  vestiy,  with  an  appropriate  inscription  to  his  memory. 


324 


THE    HUDSON. 


wreaths  of  withered  flowers,  which  have  been  killed  by  frosts,  and  buried 
by  drifts  of  lately  departed  snow.  These  will  not  long  remain,  for  all 
summer  long  fresh  and  fragrant  ones  are  lai  1  upon  that  honoured  grave 


-  IKVING'S   GEAVE. 


by  fair  hands  that  pluck  them  from  many  a  neighbouring  garden.  Here, 
at  all  times,  those  sweet  tributes  of  affection  may  be  seen,  when  the  trees 
are  in  leaf. 


THE    HUDSON.  '        325 


This  lovely  burial  spot,  from  wliicli  may  be  seen  Sleepy  Hollou-,  the 
ancient  church,  the  sparkling  waters  of  the  Po-can-te-co,  spreading  out 
into  a  little  lake  above  the  picturesque  old  dam  at  the  mill  of  Castle 
Philipse,  Sleepy  Hollow  Haven,  Tappan  Bay  and  all  its  beautiful 
surroundings,  was  chosen  long  ago  by  the  illustrious  author  of  the 
"  Sketch-Book,"  as  his  final  resting-place.  Forty  years  ago,  in  Birming- 
ham, three  thousand  miles  away  from  the  spot  where  his  remains  now 
repose,  and  long  before  he  even  dreamed  of  converting  "Wolfert's  Roost 
into  Sunnyside,  he  wrote  thus  concerning  Sleepy  Hollow,  in  his  introduc- 
tion to  the  legend  :  — 

"Not  far  from  this  village  [Tarrytown],  perhaps  about  two  miles, 
there  is  a  little  valley,  or  rather  a  lap  of  land,  among  liigh  hills,  which  is 
one  of  the  quietest  places  in  the  whole  world.  A  small  brook  glides 
through  it,  with  just  murmur  enough  to  lull  one  to  repose  ;  and  the 
occasional  whistle  of  a  quail,  or  tapping  of  a  woodpecker,  is  almost  the 

only  sound  that  ever  breaks  in  upon  the  uniform  tranquillity If 

ever  I  should  wish  for  a  retreat,  whither  I  might  steal  from  the  world 
and  its  distractions,  and  dream  quietly  away  the  remnant  of  a  troubled 
life,  I  know  of  none  more  promising  than  this  little  valley." 

When,  more  than  a  dozen  years  ago,  the  Tarrytown  Cemetery  was  laid 
out,  Mr.  Irving  chose  the  plot  of  ground  where  his  remains  now  lie,  for 
his  family  burial-place.  A  few  years  later,  when  the  cohtents  of  the 
grave  and  vaults  in  the  burial-ground  of  the  "Brick  Church"  in  Kew 
York,  were  removed,  the  remains  of  his  family  were  taken  to  this  spot 
and  interred.  A  gentleman  who  accompanied  me  to  the  grave,  super- 
intended the  removal.  Mr.  Irving  had  directed  the  remains  to  be  so 
disposed  as  to  allow  himself  to  lie  by  the  side  of  his  mother.  And  when 
the  burial  was  performed,  the  good  old  man  stood  thoughtfully  for  awhile, 
leaning  against  a  tree,  and  looking  into  his  mother's  grave,  as  it  was 
slowly  filled  with  the  earth.  Then  covering  his  face  with  his  hands  he 
wept  as  tenderly  as  a  young  child.  According  to  his  desire  he  now  rests 
by  the  side  of  that  mother,  whom  he  loved  dearly ;  and  at  his  own  left 
hand  is  reserved  a  space  for  his  only  surviving  brother.  General  Ebenezer 
Irving,  ten  years  his  senior,  who  yet  (1866)  resides  at  Sunnyside  at  the 
age  of  about  ninety-four  years. 


326 


THE    HUDSON. 


The  remains  of  Mr.  Irving's  old  Scotoli  nurse  were,  at  his  request, 
buried  in  the  same  grave  with  his  mother.  Of  this  faithful  woman  Mr. 
Irving  once  said, — "I  remember  General  Washington  perfectly.  There 
was  some  occasion  when  he  appeared  in  a  public  procession ;  my  nurse, 
a  good  old  Scotch  woman,  was  very  anxious  for  mo  to  see  him,  and  held 
me  up  in  her  arms  as  he  rode  past.  This,  however,  did  not  satisfy  her ; 
so  the  next  day,  when  walking  with  me  in  Broadway,  she  espied  him  in 
a  shop ;  she  seized  my  hand,  and  darting  in,  exclaimed  in  her  bland 
Scotch, — '  Please  your  excellency,  here's  a  bairn  that's  called  after  ye  ! ' 
General  "Washington  then  turned  his  benevolent  face  full  upon  me,  smiled, 
laid  his  hand  upon  my  head,  and  gave  me  his  blessing,  which,"  added 
Mr.  Irving,  "I  have  reason  to  believe  has  attended  me  through  life.  I 
was  but  five  years  old,  yet  I  can  feel  that  hand  upon  my  head  even  now." 
Mr.  Irving's  last  and  greatest  literary  work  was  an  elaborate  life  of 
Washington,  in  five  octavo  volumes. 

We  have  observed  that  the  Po-can-te-co,  flowing  through  Sleepy 
Hollow,  spreads  out  into  a  pretty  little  lake  above  an  ancient  and 
picturesque  dam,  near  the  almost  as  ancient  church.  This  little  lake 
extends  back  almost  to  the  bridge  in  the  dark  weird  glen,  and  furnishes 
motive  power  to  a  very  ancient  mill  that  stands  close  by  Philipse  Castle, 
as  the  more  ancient  manor-house  of  the  family  was  called.  The  first  lord 
of  an  extensive  domain  in  this  vicinity,  purchased  from  the  Sachem 
Goharius,  in  1680,  and  which  was  confirmed  by  royal  patent  the  same 
year,  was  a  descendant  of  the  ancient  Viscounts  Felyps,  of  Bohemia,  who 
took  an  active  part  in  favour  of  John  Huss  and  Jerome  of  Prague.  Here, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Po-can-te-co,  he  erected  a  strong  stone  house,  with 
port  and  loop  holes  for  cannon  and  musketry,  and  also  a  mill,  about  the 
year  1683.  Because  of  its  heavy  ordnance,  it  was  called  Castle  Philipse. 
At  that  time  the  extensive  marsh  and  meadow  land  between  it  and  the 
present  railway  was  a  fine  bay,  and  quite  large  vessels  bore  freight  to 
and  from  the  mill.  Here,  and  at  the  lower  manor-house  at  Yonkers,  the 
lords  of  Philipse's  Manor  lived  in  a  sort  of  feudal  state  for  almost  a 
century,  enjoying  exclusive  social  and  political  privileges.  The  proprietor 
in  possession  when  the  war  for  independence  broke  out,  espoused  the  cause 
of  the  crown.     His  estates  were  confiscated,  and  a  relative  of  the  family, 


THE   HUDSON, 


327 


Gerardus  Beekman,  became  tlie  purchaser  of  the  castle  and  many  broad 
acres  adjoining  it.  In  that  family  it  remained  until  the  spring  of  1860 
(about  three  quarters  of  a  century),  when  Mr.  Storm,  the  present 
proprietor,  purchased  it.  Beekman  made  a  large  addition  to  the  Castle. 
In  our  little  picture  it  is  seen  as  it  appeared  in  the  time  of  the  Philipses. 
In  the  basement  wall,  near  the  rear  of  the  building,  may  be  seen  a  port- 
hole in  which  the  muzzle  of  a  cannon  was  seen  for  full  half  a  century,  as 


PHILIPSE'S  MILL-DAM. 


a  menace  to  any  hostile  intruders  who  might  come  up  Po-can-tc-co  Bay, 
which  is  now  filled  with  earth,  and  is  a  fine  marsh  meadow. 

Upon  an  eminence  eastward  of  Philipse  Castle  and  the  ancient  church, 
whose  base  is  washed  by  the  Po-can-te-co,  is  Irving  Park,  a  domain  of 
about  one  hundred  acres,  which  was  laid  out  by  Charles  H.  Lyon,  Esq., 
for  the  purpose  of  villa  sites,  that  should  have  all  the  advantages  of  highly 


328 


THE   HUDSON. 


ornamented  grounds,  pleasant  neighbourhood,  retirement,  and  extensive 
and  varied  views  of  a  beautiful  country,  at  a  moderate  expense.  Prom 
this  hill,  and  its  river  slopes,  comprehensive  views  may  be  had  of  some  of 
the  most  charming  scenery  of  the  lower  Hudson.  From  its  summit, 
overlooking  Sleepy  Hollow,  the  eye  commands  a  sweep  of  the  Hudson 
from  New  York  to  the  Highlands,  a  distance  of  fifty  miles,  and  views  in 
five  or  six  counties  in  the  States  of  New  York  and  New  Jersey.  From  the 
veranda  of  one  of  the  cottages  in  the  park,  most  charming  glimpses  may 


PIIILIPSE   CASTLE. 


be  obtained  of  portions  of  the  village  of  Tarrytown,*  near,  with  its  whari 
and  railway  station  ;  and  of  the  Palisades  below  Piermont,  the  village  of 
Piermont  and  its  pier  jutting  into  the  Hudson  a  mile  from  the  shore,  the 
village  of  Eockland  (formerly  Sneden's  Landing),  and  the  intervening 


*  The  natives  called  this  place  A-Up-conck,  or  Place  of  Elins,  that  tiee  having  been  abundant  there 
in  early  times,  and  still  flourishes.  The  Dutch  called  it  Teriren  Dorp,  or  Wheat  Town,  because  that 
cereal  |,Tew  luxuriantly  upon  the  Oreenburgh  Hills  and  valleys  around.  As  usual,  the  English  retained 
a  part  of  the  Dutch  name,  and  called  it  Tervve  Towni,  from  which  is  derived  the  modern  pronunciation, 
'J'arrytown.  In  the  legend  of  "  .sleepy  Hollow."  Mr.  Irving  says, — *'  The  name  was  given,  we  are  told, 
in  former  days  by  the  good  housewives  of  the  adjacent  country,  from  the  inveterate  propensity  of  their 
husbands  to  linger  about  the  village  taverns  on  market  days."    So  they  called  it  Tarrytown. 


THE   HUDSON. 


329 


river  with  its  numerous  water- cx'aft.  Our  little  picture  of  tliat  scene 
gives  some  idea  of  tte  delights  of  a  residence  within  Irving  Park,  aiforded 
by  broad  views  of  nature  in  its  lovely  aspects,  and  the  teeming  commerce 
of  a  great  river.  Besides  these  attractions  there  are  pleasant  views  of  the 
Fo-cati-ff-co,  as  it  dashes  through  Sleepy  Hollow  in  swift  rapids  and 
sparkling  cascades,  from  various  portions  of  the  park.     And  all  of  these. 


UISTAlil  VIEW  AT  TABKTXOWN. 


with  the  pleasant  roads  and  paths,  belong  to  the  owners  of  dwellings 
within  the  park.  The  proprietor  of  an  acre  of  ground  and  his  family  may 
take  their  morning  walk  or  evening  drive  through  miles  of  varied  scenery, 
without  going  into  the  public  road,  and  with  the  agreeable  consciousness 
of  being  on  their  own  premises. 

Soon  after  leaving  the  Po-can-te-co,  on  the  way  towards  Tarry  town,  a 


330 


THE   HUDSON. 


fine  monument  of  white  Westchester  marble,  about  twenty-five  feet  in 
height,  is  seen  at  the  side  of  the  highway,  and  on  the  margin  of  a  little 
stream  called  Andre's  Brook.  It  is  surrounded  by  an  iron  railing,  and 
upon  a  tablet  next  to  the  road  is  the  following  inscription,  which  explains 
the  object  of  the  monument : — 

"  On  this  spot,  the  22nd  day  of  September,  1780,  the  spy.  Major  John 


VIEW  ox  THE  PO-CAK-TE-CO  FEOJI  IRVING  PARK. 


Andre,  Adjutant-general  of  the  British  army,  was  captured  by  John 
Paulding,  David  "Williams,  and  Isaac  Van  Wart,  all  natives  of  this  county. 
History  has  told  the  rest. 

"  The  people  of  Westchester  County  have  erected  this  Monument,  as 
well  to  commemorate  a  great  event  as  to  testify  their  high  estimation  of 
that  integrity  and  patriotism  which,  rejecting  every  temptation,  rescued 


THE   HUDSON. 


331 


the  United  States  from  most  imminent  peril,  by  baffling  the  arts  of  a  Spy 
and  the  plots  of  a  Traitor.     Dedicated  October  7,  1853." 

The  land  on  which  this  monument  stands  was  given  for  the  purpose,  by 
William  Taylor,  a  coloured  man,  who  lives  in  a  neat  cottage  close  by, 
surrounded  by  ornamented  grounds,  through  wliich  flows  Andre's  Brook. 
Hon.  Henry  J.  Raymond,  editor  of  the  Kew  York  Baihj  Times,  addressed 


MONUMI!.^T  AT  TARR\TO^>. 


the  multitude  on  the  occasion  of  the  dedication.  Monuments  of  white 
marble  have  been  erected  to  the  memory  of  two  of  the  captors  of  Andre, 
over  their  respective  remains.  That  to  Paulding  is  in  the  burial-ground 
of  St.  Peter's  Church,  near  Peek's  Kill.  It  was  erected  by  the  corporation 
of  the  city  of  New  York,  as  "a  memorial  sacred  to  public  gkatiiude." 
William  Paulding,  then  mayor  of  New  York,  addressed  the  assembled 


332 


THE   HUDSON. 


citizens  on  the  occasion  of  its  dedication,  November  22,  1827.  The 
monument  to  the  memory  of  Van  Wart  is  over  his  remains  in  the 
Grcenburgh  Presbyterian  Chnrch,  near  the  lovely  Nepcran  river,  a  few 
miles  from  Tarrytown.  It  was  dedicated  on  the  11th  of  June,  1820,  when 
the  assembled  citizens  were  addressed  by  General  Aaron  Ward,  of  Sing 
Sing.  The  monument  was  erected  by  the  citizens  of  Westchester  County. 
The  remains  of  Williams  are  at  Livingstonville,  Schoharie  County  ;  no 
monument  lias  yet  been  erected  over  them. 

"History  has  told  the  rest,"  says  the  inscription  upon  the  monument. 
In  the  nest  Chapter  we  will  observe  what  history  says. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

IE   have   already  observed   the   progress   of  Arnold's 

treason,  from  its  inception  to  his  conference  with 

''i.  ■     Andre  at  the  house  of  Joshua  Hctt  Smith.     There 

-■  t,     we  left  them,  Andre  being  in  possession  of  sundry 

valuable  papers,  revealing  the  condition  of  the  post 

to  be  surrendered,  and  a  pass.     He  remained  alone  with  his 

troubled  thoughts  all  day.     The   Vulture,  as  we  have  seen,  had 

dropped   down  the  river,    out   of  sight,   in    consequence  of   a 

cannonade  from  a  small  piece  of  ordnance  upon  the  extremity  of 

Teller's  Point,   sent  there   for  the  purpose   by  Colonel  Henry 

Livingston,  who  was  in  command  at  Verplanck's  Point,   a  few  miles 

above. 

In  the  afternoon  Andre  solicited  Smith  to  take  him  back  to  the  Vulture. 
Smith  refused,  with  the  false  plea  of  illness — but  he  oflfered  to  travel  half 
the  night  with  the  adjutant- general  if  he  would  take  the  land  route. 
There  was  no  alternative,  and  Andre  was  compelled  to  yield  to  the  force 
of  circumstances.  He  consented  to  cross  the  King's  Ferry  (from  Stony  to 
Yerplanck's  Point),  and  make  his  way  back  to  New  York  by  land.  He 
exchanged  his  military  coat  for  a  citizen's  dress,  placed  the  papers  re- 
ceived from  Arnold  in  his  stockings  under  his  feet,  and  at  a  little 
before  sunset  on  the  evening  of  the  22nd  of  September,  accompanied  by 
Smith  and  a  negro  servant,  all  mounted,  made  his  way  towards  King's 
Ferry,  bearing  the  following  pass,  in  the  event  of  his  being  challenged 
within  the  American  lines  :  — 


"Head-quarters,  Eobinson's  House,  Sept.  22,  1780. 

"  Permit  Mr.  John  Anderson  to  pass  the  Guards  to  the  White  Plains, 
or  below,  if  he  chooses,  he  being  on  public  business  by  my  direction. 


'  li.  Aenold,  Major- General." 


334  THE  HUDSON. 


At  twiliglit  they  passed  thi'ough  the  works  at  Verplanck's  Point,  unsus- 
pected, and  then  turned  their  faces  towards  the  White  Plains,  the  interior 
route  to  New  York.  Andre  was  moody  and  silent.  He  had  disoheyed 
the  orders  of  his  commander  by  receiving  papers,  and  was  involuntarily 
a  spy,  in  every  sense  of  the  word,  within  the  enemy's  lines.  Eight  miles 
from  Verplanck's  they  were  hailed  by  a  sentinel.  Arnold's  pass  was 
presented,  and  the  travellers  were  about  to  pass  on,  when  the  officer  on 
duty  advised  them  to  remain  until  morning,  because  of  dangers  on  the 
road.  After  much  persuasion,  Andre  consented  to  remain,  but  passed  a 
sleepless  night.  At  an  early  hour  the  party  were  in  the  saddle,  and  at 
Pine's  Bridge  over  the  Croton,  Andre,  with  a  lighter  heart,  parted  com- 
pany with  Smith  and  his  servant,  having  been  assured  that  he  was  then 
upon  the  neutral  ground,  beyond  the  reach  of  the  American  patrolling 
parties. 

Andre  had  been  warned  to  avoid  the  Cow  Boys.  These  were  bands  of 
Tory  marauders  who  infested  the  neutral  ground.  He  was  told  that  they 
were  more  numerous  upon  the  Tarrytown  road  than  that  which  led  to  the 
White  Plains.  As  these  were  friends  of  the  British,  he  resolved  to  travel 
tlie  Tarrytown  or  river  road.  He  felt  assured  that  if  he  should  fall  into 
the  hands  of  the  Cow  Boys,  he  would  be  taken  by  them  to  New  York,  his 
destination.     This  change  of  route  was  his  fatal  mistake. 

On  the  morning  when  Andre  crossed  Pine's  Bridge,  a  little  band  of 
seven  volunteers  went  out  near  Tarrytown  to  prevent  the  Cow  Boys 
driving  the  cattle  to  New  York,  and  to  arrest  any  suspicious  travellers 
upon  the  highway.  Three  of  these — Paulding,  Van  Wart,  and  Williams — 
were  under  the  shade  of  a  clump  of  trees,  near  a  spring  on  the  borders  of 
the  stream  just  mentioned,  and  now  known  by  the  name  of  Andre's 
Brook,  playing  cards,  when  a  stranger  appeared  on  horseback,  a  short 
distance  up  the  road.  His  dress  and  manner  were  different  from  ordinary 
travellers  seen  in  that  vicinity,  and  they  determined  to  step  out  and 
question  him,  Paulding  had  lately  escaped  from  captivity  in  New  York, 
in  the  dress  of  a  German  Yager,  the  mercenaries  in  the  employment  of 
the  British ;  and  on  seeing  him,  Andre,  thereby  deceived,  exclaimed, 
"  Thank  God  !  I  am  once  more  among  friends."  But  Paulding  presented 
his  musket,  and  ordered  him  to  stop.     "Gentlemen,"  said  Andre,   "I 


THE  HUDSON. 


335 


hope  you  belong  to  our  party?"  "What  party?"  asked  Paulding. 
"The  Lower  Party"  (meaning  the  British),  Andre  replied.  "I  do," 
said  Paulding;  when  Andro  said,  "I  am  a  British  officer,  out  in  the 
country  on  particular  business,  and  I  hope  you  will  not  detain  me  a 
minute."  Paulding  told  him  to  dismount,  when  Andre,  conscious  of  his 
mistake,  exclaimed,  "My  God!  I  must  do  anything  to  get  along;"  and 
with  a  forced  good-humour,  pulled  out  General  Arnold's  pass.  Still  they 
insisted  upon  his  dismounting,  when  he  warned  them  not  to  detain  him, 
as  he  was  on  public  business  for  the  General.  They  were  inflexible. 
They  said  there  were  many  bad  people  on  the  road,  and  they  did  not 
know  but  he  might  be  one  of  them.  He  dismounted,  when  they  took 
him  into  a  thicket,  and  searched  him.  They  found  nothing  to  confirm 
their  suspicions  that  he  was  not  what  he  represented  himself  to  bo.  They 
then  ordered  him  to  pull  off  his  boots,  which  he  did  without  hesitation, 
and  they  were  about  to  allow  him  to  dress  himself,  when  they  observed 
something  in  his  stockings  under  his  feet.  "When  these  were  removed 
they  discovered  the  papers  which  Arnold  had  put  in  his  possession. 
Finding  himself  detected,  he  oflered  them  bribes  to  let  him  go.  They 
refused ;  and  he  was  conducted  to  the  nearest  American  post,  and  delivered 
to  a  commanding  officer.  That  officer,  with  strange  obtuseness  of  percep- 
tion, was  about  to  send  the  prisoner  to  General  Arnold  with  a  letter 
detailing  the  circumstances  of  his  arrest,  when  Major  Tallmadgc,  a  bright 
and  vigilant  officer,  protested  against  the  measure,  and  expressed  his 
suspicions  of  Arnold's  fidelity.  But  Jamieson,  the  commander,  only  half 
yielded.  He  detained  the  pn'sotier,  but  sent  the  letter  to  Arnold.  That 
was  the  one  which  the  traitor  received  while  at  breakfast  at  Beverly 
(Robinson's  House),  and  which  caused  his  precipitate  flight  to  the  Vulture. 
The  circumstances  of  that  flight  have  already  been  narrated. 

Andre  wrote  a  letter  to  "Washington,  briefly  but  frankly  detailing  the 
events  of  his  mission,  and  concluded,  after  relating  how  he  was  conducted 
to  Smith's  House,  and  changed  his  clothes,  by  saying,  "Thus,  as  I  have 
had  the  honour  to  relate,  was  I  betrayed  (being  adjutant-general  of  the 
British  army)  into  the  vile  condition  of  an  enemy  in  disguise  within 
your  posts." 

"Washington  ordered  Andre  to  be  sent  first  to  West  Point,  and  tlicn  to 


336 


THE   HUDSON. 


Tiippan,  an  inland  Iiamlet  on  the  west  side  of  the  Hudson  opposite  Tarry- 
town,  thou  the  head-quarters  of  the  American  army.  There,  at  his  own 
quarters,  ho  summoned  a  board  of  general  officers  on  the  29th  of  Septem- 
ber, and  ordered  them  to  examine  into  the  case  of  Major  Andre,  and 
report  the  result.  He  also  directed  them  to  give  their  opinion  as  to  the 
light  in  which  the  prisoner  ought  to  be  regarded,  and  the  punishment 
that  should  be  inflicted.  Andre  was  arraigned  before  them,  on  the  same 
day,  in  the  church  not  far  from  "Washington's  quarters.     He  made  to 


"WASHINGTON'S   HEAU-l^UARTEES   AT  TAPPAN. 


them  the  same  truthful  statement  of  facts  which  he  gave  in  his  letter  to 
Washington,  and  remarked,  "I  leave  them  to  operate  with  the  board, 
persuaded  that  you  -will  do  me  justice."  He  was  remanded  to  prison  ; 
and  after  long  and  careful  deliberation,  the  hoard  reported  "  That  Major 
Andre,  adjutant-general  of  the  British  anny,  ought  to  be  considered  as  a 
spy  from  the  enemy,  and  that  agreeably  to  the  law  and  usage  of  nations, 
it  is  their  opinion  he  ought  to  suffer  death." 

Washington  approved  the  sentence  on  the  30th,  and  ordered  his  execu- 
tion the  next  day  at  five  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.     The  youth,  candour. 


THE    HUDSON. 


337 


gentleness,  and  honourable  bearing  of  the  prisoner  made  a  deep  impression 
on  the  court  and  the  commander-in-chief.  Had  their  decision  been  in 
consonance  with  their  feelings  instead  of  their  judgments  and  the  stern 
necessities  of  war,  he  would  never  have  suffered  death.  There  was  a 
general  desire  on  the  part  of  the  Americans  to  save  him.  The  only  mode 
was  to  exchange  him  for  Arnold,  and  hold  the  traitor  responsible  for  all 
the  acts  of  his  victim.  Sir  Henry  Clinton  was  a  man  of  nice  honour,  and 
would  not  be  likely  to  exhibit  such  bad  faith  towards  Arnold,  even  to 
save  his  beloved  adjutant-general.  jS^or  would  Washington  make  such  a 
proposition.  He,  however,  respited  the  prisoner  for  a  day,  and  gave  others 
an  opportunity  to  lay  an  informal  proposition  of  that  kind  before  Clinton. 
A  subaltern  went  to  the  nearest  British  outpost  with  a  letter  from  Wash- 
ington to  Clinton,  containing  the  ofiScial  proceedings  of  the  court-martial, 
and  Andre's  letter  to  the  Ameiican  commander.  That  subaltern,  as  in- 
structed, informed  the  messenger  who  was  to  bear  the  packet  to  Sir  Henry, 
that  he  believed  Andre  might  be  exchanged  for  Arnold.  This  was  com- 
municated to  Sir  Henry.  He  refused  compliance,  but  sent  a  general 
officer  up  to  the  borders  of  the  neutral  ground,  to  confer  with  one  from 
the  American  camp  on  the  subject  of  the  innocence  of  Major  Andre. 
General  Greene,  the  president  of  the  court,  met  General  Eobertson,  the 
commissioner  from  Clinton,  at  Dobbs'  I'erry.  The  conference  was  fruitless 
of  results  favourable  to  Andre. 

The  unfortunate  young  man  was  not  disturbed  by  the  fear  of  death,  but 
the  manner  was  a  subject  of  great  solicitude  to  him.  He  wrote  a  touching 
letter  to  Washington,  asking  to  die  the  death  of  a  soldier,  and  not  that  of 
a  spy.  Again  the  stern  rules  of  war  interposed.  The  manner  of  death 
must  be  according  to  the  character  given  him  by  the  sentence.  All  hearts 
were  powerfully  stirred  by  sympathy  for  him.  The  equity  of  that  sentence 
was  not  questioned  by  military  men  ;  and  yet,  only  inexorable  expediency 
at  that  hour  when  the  Republican  cause  seemed  in  the  greatest  peril, 
caused  the  execution  of  the  sentence  in  his  case.  The  sacrifice  had  to  be 
made  for  the  public  good,  and  the  prisoner  was  hung  as  a  spy  at  Tappan 
at  noon  on  the  2nd  of  October,  1780. 

It  is  said  that  Washington  never  saw  Major  Andre,  having  avoided 
a  personal  interview  with  him  from  the  beginning.     Unwilling  to  give 

X    X 


338 


THE    HUDSON. 


bim  unnecessary  pain,  Washington  did  not  reply  to  his  letter  asking  for 
the  death  of  a  soldier,  and  the  nnliappy  prisoner  was  not  certain  what 
■was  to  be  the  manner  of  his  execution,  until  he  was  led  to  the  gallows. 
The  lines  of  Miss  Anno  Seward,  Andre's  friend,  commencing, 

"  O  WasUiiigton  I  I  thuiiRtit  tliee  gi'eat  ami  gocnl, 
Nor  knew  thy  Nero-tllirat  foi"  guiltless  blood, 
Severe  to  use  the  power  thiit  fortune  gave. 
Thou  cool,  determined  mnriierer  of  the  brave !" 

were  unjust,  ibr  he  sincerely  commiserated  the  fate  of  the  prisoner,  and 
would  have  made  every  proper  sacrifice  to  save  him. 


ANDRES  }'EN  AMI  INK   SKETCH. 


Major  Andre  was  an  accomplished  j'oung  man,  and  a  clever  amateur 
artist.  He  was  perfectly  composed  from  the  time  that  his  fate  was  made 
known  to  him.  On  the  day  fixed  for  his  execution,  he  sketched  with  pen 
and  ink  a  likeness  of  himself  sitting  at  a  table,  and  gave  it  to  the  officer 
of  his  guard,  who  had  been  kind  to  him.  It  is  preserved  in  the  Trumbull 
Gallery  of  pictures,  at  Yale  College,  in  Connecticut. 

Major  Andre  was  buried  at  the  place  of  his  execution.  In  1832,  his 
remains  were  removed,  under  instructions  of  his  Iloyal  Highness  the  Duke 


THE    HUDSON. 


339 


of  York,  by  James  Buchanan,  the  British  consul  at  New  York,  and  de- 
posited in  a  grave  near  a  monument  in  Westminster  Abbey,  erected  by 
his  king  not  long  after  his  death.  It  is  a  mural  monument,  in  the  form 
of  a  sarcophagus,  standing  on  a  pedestal.  It  is  surmounted  by  Britannia 
and  lier  lion.  On  the  front  of  the  sarcophagus  is  a  basso-relievo,  in  ■n-liich 
is  represented  General  Washington  and  Ids  officers  in  a  tent  at  the  moment 


iniRlffflftTWiF^i 


ANDRE'S  MONU.MENT. 


when  he  received  the  report  of  the  court  of  inquiry.  At  the  same  time  a 
messenger  is  seen  with  a  flag,  bearing  a  letter  from  Andre  to  Washington. 
On  the  opposite  side  is  a  guard  of  Continental  soldiers,  and  the  tree  on 
which  Andre  was  hung.  Two  men  are  preparing  the  prisoner  for  execu- 
tion, in  the  centre  of  this  design.     At  the  foot  of  the  tree  sit  Mercy  and 


340  THE    HUDSON. 


Innocence  bewailing  his  Me.  Upon  a  panel  of  the  pedestal  is  the  fol- 
lowing inscription : — "  Sacred  to  the  memory  of  Major  JonN  Andke, 
who,  raised  by  his  merit  at  an  early  period  of  his  life  to  the  rank  of 
Adjutant-General  of  the  British  forces  in  America,  and  employed  in  an 
important  but  hazardous  enterprise,  fell  a  sacrifice  to  his  zeal  for  his  king 
and  country,  on  the  2nd  of  October,  a.d.  1780,  universally  beloved  and 
esteemed  by  the  army  in  which  he  served,  and  lamented  even  by  his  foes. 
His  gracious  sovereign,  Kixo  George  the  Tniiu),  has  caused  this  monu- 
ment to  be  erected."  On  the  base  is  a  record  of  the  removal  of  his 
remains  from  the  banks  of  the  Hudson  to  their  final  resting-place  near 
the  banks  of  the  Thames.  Such  is  the  sad  story,  in  brief  outline,  of  the 
closing  days  of  the  accomplished  Andre's  life.  Arnold,  the  traitor,  was 
despised  even  by  those  who  accepted  his  treason  for  purposes  of  state  ;  and 
his  hand  never  afterwards  touched  the  palm  of  an  honourable  Englishman. 
In  his  own  country,  he  had  ever  occupied  the  "  bad  eminence  "  of  arch 
traitor,  until  the  beginning  of  the  year  1861;  others  now  bear  the 
palm. 

Upon  a  high  and  fertile  promontory  below  Tarrytown,  may  be  seen  one 
of  the  finest  and  purest  specimens  of  the  Pointed  Tudor  style  of  domestic 
architecture  in  the  United  States,  the  residence  of  Philip  R.  Paulding,  Esq., 
and  called  Paulding  Manor.  It  was  built  in  1840.  Its  walls  are  of  the 
Mount  Pleasant  or  Sing  Sing  marble.  The  whole  outline,  ground  and 
sky,  is  exceedingly  picturesque,  there  being  gables,  towers,  turrets,  and 
pinnacles.  There  is  also  a  great  variety  of  windows  decorated  with 
mullions  and  tracery ;  and  at  one  wing  is  a  Port  CocJiere,  or  covered 
entrance  for  carriages.  It  has  a  broad  arcaded  piazza,  affording  shade 
and  shelter  for  promenading.  The  interior  is  admirably  arranged  for 
convenience  and  artistic  efi'ect.  The  drawing-room  is  a  spacious  apart- 
ment, occupying  the  whole  of  the  south  wing.  It  has  a  high  ceiling, 
richly  groin-arched,  with  fan  tracery  or  diverging  ribs,  springing  from 
and  supported  by  columnar  shafts.  The  ceilings  of  all  the  apartments  of 
the  first  story  are  highly  elegant  in  decoration.  "  That  of  the  dining- 
room,"  says  Mr.  Downing,  "is  concavo-convex  in  shape,  with  diverging 
ribs  and  ramified  tracery  springing  from  corbels  in  the  angles,  the  centre 
being  occupied  by  a  pendant.     In  the  saloon  the  ribbed  ceiling  forms  two 


;iiWt^r. 


THE   HUDSON. 


341 


inclined  planes.  The  floor  of  the  second  story  has  a  much  larger  area 
than  that  of  the  first,  as  the  rooms  in  the  former  project  over  the  open 
portals  of  the  latter.  The  spacious  library,  over  the  western  portal, 
lighted  by  a  lofty  window,  is  the  finest  apartment  of  this  story,  with  its 
carved  foliated  timber  roof  rising  in  the  centre  to  twenty-five  feet."  The 
dimensions  of  this  room  are  thirty-seven  by  eighteen  feet,  including  an 
organ  gallei-y.  Ever  since  its  erection,  Paulding  Manor  has  been  the 
most  conspicuous  dwelling  to  be  seen  by  the  eye  of  the  voyager  on  the 
Lower  Hudson. 


PiULDIXG  MASOE. 


About  three  miles  below  Tarrytown  is  Sunnyside,  the  residence  of  the 
late  Washington  Irving.  It  is  reached  from  the  public  road  by  a  winding 
carriage-way  that  passes  here  through  rich  pastures  and  pleasant  wood- 
lands, and  then  along  the  margin  of  a  dell  through  which  runs  a  pleasant 
brook,  reminding  one  of  the  merry  laughter  of  children  as  it  dances  away 
riverward,  and  leaps,  in  beautiful  cascades  and  rapids,  into  a  little  bay  a 
few  yards  from  the  cottage  of  Sunnyside.  There,  more  than  fifteen  years 
ago,  I  visited  the  dear  old  man  whom  the  world  loved  so  well,  and  who 


342 


THE    HUDSON. 


SO  lately  was  laid  beneath  the  greensward  on  the  margin  of  Sleepy  Hollow, 
made  classic  by  his  genius.  Then  I  made  the  sketch  of  Sunnyside  here 
presented  to  the  reader.  It  was  a  soft,  delicious  day  in  June,  when  the 
trees  were  in  full  leaf  and  the  birds  in  full  song.  I  had  left  the  railway- 
cars  a  fourth  of  a  mile  below  where  the  germ  of  a  village  had  just  ap- 
peared, and  strolled  along  the  iron  road  to  a  stile,  over  which  I  climbed, 


SUXNYSIDE, 


and  ascended  the  bank  by  a  pleasant  path  to  the  shadow  of  a  fine  old 
cedar,  not  far  from  the  entrance  gate.  There  I  rested,  and  sketched  the 
quaint  cottage  half  shrouded  in  English  ivy.  Its  master  soon  appeared 
in  the  porch,  with  a  little  fair-haired  boy  whom  he  led  to  the  river  bank 
in  search  of  daisies  and  buttercups.  It  was  a  pleasant  picture,  and  yet 
there  was  a  cloud-shadow  resting  upon  it.     His  best  earthly  affections 


THE    HUDSON.  343 


had  been  b\nied,  long  years  before,  in  the  grave  with  a  sweet  young  lady 
who  had  promised  to  become  his  bride.  Death  interposed  between  the 
betrothal  and  the  appointed  nuptials.  He  remained  faithful  to  that  first 
love.  Throughout  all  the  vicissitudes  of  a  long  life,  in  society  and  in 
solitude,  in  his  native  land  and  in  foreign  countries,  on  the  stormy  ocean 
and  in  the  repose  of  quiet  homes,  he  had  borne  her  miniature  in  his 
bosom  in  a  plain  golden  case,  and  upon  his  table,  for  daily  use,  always 
lay  a  small  Bible,  with  the  name  of  his  lost  one,  in  the  delicate  hand- 
writing of  a  female,  upon  the  title-page.  As  I  looked  upon  that  good 
man  of  gentle,  loving  nature,  a  bachelor  of  sixty-five,  I  thought  of  his 
exquisite  picture  of  a  true  woman,  in  his  charming  little  story  of  "  The 
Wife,"  and  wondered  whether  his  own  experience  had  not  been  in 
accordance  with  the  following  beautiful  passage  in  his  "  Newstead 
Abbey,"  in  which  he  says: — "An  early,  innocent,  and  unfortunate 
passion,  however  fruitful  of  pain  it  may  be  to  the  man,  is  a  lasting 
advantage  to  the  poet.  It  is  a  well  of  sweet  and  bitter  fancies,  of 
refined  and  gentle  sentiments,  of  elevated  and  ennobling  thoughts,  shut 
up  in  the  deep  recesses  of  the  heart,  keeping  it  green  amidst  the  withering 
blights  of  the  world,  and  by  its  casual  gushings  and  overflowings, 
recalling  at  times  all  the  freshness,  and  innocence,  and  enthusiasm  of 
youthful  days." 

I  visited  Sunnyside  again  only  a  fortnight  before  the  death  of 
ilr.  Irving.  I  found  him  in  his  study,  a  small,  quiet  room,  lighted  by 
two  delicately  curtained  windows,  one  of  which  is  seen  nearest  the  porch, 
in  our  little  sketch  of  the  mansion.  From  that  window  he  could  see  far 
down  the  river  ;  from  the  other,  overhung  with  ivy,  he  looked  out  upon 
the  lawn  and  the  carriage-way  from  the  lane.  In  a  curtained  recess  was 
a  lounge  with  cushions,  and  books  on  every  side.  A  large  easy-chair, 
and  two  or  three  others,  a  writing-table  with  many  drawers,  shelves 
filled  with  books,  three  small  pictures,  and  two  neat  bronze  candelabra, 
completed  the  furniture  of  the  room.  It  was  warmed  by  an  open  grate 
of  coals  in  a  black  variegated  marble  chimney-piece.  Over  this  were  the 
three  small  pictures.  The  larger  represents  "A  literary  party  at  Sir 
Joshua  Eeynolds's."  The  other  two  were  spirited  little  pen-and-ink 
sketches,  with  a  little  colour — illustrative  of  scenes  in  one  of  the  earlier 


f  ?  >' 


344 


THE   HUDSON. 


of  Mr.  Irving's  works — "Knickerbocker's  History  of  New  York" — 
which  ho  picked  up  in  London  many  years  ago.  One  represented 
Stuyvesant  confronting  Eisingh,  the  Swedish  governor;  the  other, 
Stuyvesant's  wrath  in  council. 

Mr.  Irving  was  in  feeble  health,  but  hopeful  of  speedy  convalescence. 
He  expressed  his  gratitude  because  his  strength  and  life  had  been  spared 


lEVINO'S  STUDV. 

until  he  completed  the  greatest  of  all  his  works,  his  "  Life  of 
AVashington."  "I  have  laid  aside  my  pen  for  ever,"  he  said;  "my 
work  is  finished,  and  now  I  intend  to  rest."  He  was  then  seven  years 
past  the  allotted  age  of  man,  yet  his  mental  energy  seemed  unimpaired, 
and  his  genial  good-humour  was  continually  apparent.  I  took  the  first 
course  of  dinner  with  him,  when  I  was  compelled  to  leave  to  be  in  time 


i 

I 


THE   HUDSON. 


345 


for  the  next  traia  of  cars  that  would  convey  me  home.  He  arose  from 
the  table,  and  passed  into  the  little  drawing-room  with  me.  At  the  door 
he  took  my  hand  in  both  of  his,  and  with  a  pleasant  smile  said,  "  I  wish 
you  success  in  all  your  undertakings.     God  bless  you." 

It  was  the  last  day  of  the  "Indian  summer,"  in  1859,  a  soft,  balmy, 
glorious  day  in  the  middle  of  November.  The  setting  sun  was  sending  a 
blaze  of  red  light  across  the  bosom  of  Tappan  Bay,  when  I  left  the  porch 
and  followed  the  winding  path  down  the  bank  to  the  railway.  There 
was  peacefulness  in  the  aspect  of  all  nature  at  that  hoiir,  and  I  lelt 
Sunnyside,  feeling  sensibly  the  influence  of  a  good  man's  blessing.  Only 
a  tortnight  afterwards,  on  a  dark,  stormy  evening,  I  took  up  a  newspaper 
at  an  inn  in  a  small  village  of  the  Valley  of  the  Upper  Hudson,  and  read 
the  startling  announcement,  "  Duath  of  Washington  Irviny."  I  felt  as  if 
a  near  and  dear  friend  hatl^been  snatched  away  for  ever.  I  was  too  far 
from  home  to  be  at  the  funeral,  but  oue  of  my  family,  very  dear  to  mc, 
was  in  the  crowd  of  sincere  mourners  at  his  grave,  on  the  borders  of 
Sleepy  Hollow.  The  day  was  a  lovely  one  on  the  verge  of  winter,  and 
thousands  stood  reverently  around,  on  that  sunny  slope,  while  the  earth 
was  cast  upon  the  coflin  and  the  preacher  uttered  the  solemn  words, 
"  Earth  to  earth,  ashes  to  ashes,  dust  to  dust."  Few  men  ever  went  to 
the  tomb  lamented  hy  more  sincere  friends.  From  many  a  pulpit  his 
name  was  spoken  with  reverence.  Literary  and  other  societies  through- 
out the  land  expressed  their  sorrow  and  respect.  A  thousand  pens  wrote 
eulogies  for  the  press,  and  Bryant,  the  poet,  his  life-long  friend,  pro- 
nounced an  impressive  funeral  oration  not  long  afterwards,  at  the  request 
of  the  New  York  Historical  Society,  of  which  Mr.  Irving  was  a  member. 

I  visited  Sunnyside  again  in  May,  1860,  and  after  drinking  at  the 
mysterious  spring,*  strolled  along  the  brook  at  the  mouth  of  the  glen, 
where  it  comes  down  in  cascades  before  entering  the  once  beautiful  little 
bay,  now  cut  off  from  free  union  with  the  river  by  the  railway.     The 


*  This  spring  is  at  the  foot  of  the  bank  on  the  verj'  brink  of  the  livei-.  "  Tradition  declares,"  sajs 
Mr.  Irving  in  his  admirable  stoiy  of  "  Wulfert's  Koost,"  "that  it  was  smuggled  over  from  Holland  in 
a  churn  by  Femmetie  Van  Blarcom,  wife  of  Goosen  Garrett  Van  Blarcom,  one  of  the  first  settlers,  and 
that  she  took  it  up  by  night,  unknown  to  her  husband,  from  beside  their  farm-house  near  fiotterdam  ; 
beiug  sure  she  should  find  no  water  equal  to  it  in  the  new  country— and  she  was  right." 

Y    Y 


846 


THE    HUDSON. 


channel  was  fuirof  crystal  water.  The  tender  foliage  was  casting  delicate 
shadows  where,  at  this  time,  there  is  half  twilight  under  the  umhragcous 
branches,  and  the  trees  arc  full  of  warblers.     It  is  a  charming  spot,  and  is 


THE  BBOOK  AT  SUNIfYSIDi:. 


consecrated  by  many  memories  of  Irving  and  his  friends  who  frequented 
this  romantic  little  dell  when  the  summer  sun  was  at  meridian. 

After  sketching  the  brook  at  the  cascades,  I  climbed  its  banks,  crossed 


THE   HUDSON. 


347 


the  lane,  and  wandered  along  a  shaded  path  by  a  gardener's  cottage  to  a 
hollow  in  the  hills,  filled  with  water,  in  which  a  bevy  of  ducks  were 
sporting.     This  pond,  which  Mr.  Irving  playfully  called  his  "  Mediter- 


THE  POND,   OR  "  MEDITEEHANEAN  SEA.' 


ranean  Sea,"  was  made  by  damming  the  stream,  and  thus  a  pretty 
cascade  at  its  outlet  was  formed.  It  is  in  the  shape  of  the  "  palm  leaf" 
that  comes  from  the  loom.     On  one  side  a  wooded  hill  stretches  down  to 


348 


THE   HUDSON. 


it  abruptly,  leaving  only  space  enough  for  a  path,  and  on  others  it 
washes  the  feet  of  gentle  grassy  slopes.  This  is  one  of  the  many 
charming  pictures  to  be  found  in  the  landscape  of  Sunnyside.  After 
strolling  along  the  pathways  in  various  directions,  sometimes  finding 
myself  upon  the  domains  of  the  neighbours  of  Sunnyside  (for  no  fence  or 
hedge  barriers  exist  between  them),  I  made  my  way  back  to  the  cottage, 
where  the  eldest  and  only  surviving  brother  of  Mr.  Irving,  and  his 
daughters,  reside.  These  daughters  were  always  as  children  to  the  late 
occupant,  and  by  their  affection  and  domestic  skill  they  made  his  home  a 
delightful  one  to  himself  and  friends.  But  the  chief  light  of  that 
dwelling  is  removed,  and  there  are  shadows  at  Sunnyside  that  fall  darkly 
upon  the  visitor  who  remembers  the  sunshine  of  its  former  days,  for,  as 
his  friend  Tuckerman  wrote  on  the  day  after  the  funeral, — 


"  He  wliose  fiincy  wove  a  8iteU 
As  lasting  as  the  scene  is  fair, 
And  made  tlie  mountain,  stream,  and  dell. 
His  own  dream-life  for  ever  share ; 

"  He  who  with  England's  household's  grace. 
And  with  the  In-ave  romance  of  Spain. 
Tradition's  lore  and  Nature's  face, 
Imbued  his  visionary  brain : 

"Mused  in  Granada's  old  arcade 

As  gu^h'd  the  Moorish  fount  at  noon. 

With  the  last  minstrel  thoughtful  stray'd, 

To  niin'd  shrines  beneath  the  moon  ; 

"And  breathed  the  tenderness  and  wit 
Thus  garner'd,  in  expression  pure, 
As  now  his  thoughts  with  humour  tht. 
And  now  to  pathos  wisely  lure ; 

"  Who  traced  with  sympathetic  ham! 
Our  peerless  chieftain's  high  career. 
His  life  that  gladden'd  all  the  land. 
And  blest  a  home— is  ended  here !" 


There  was  a  fascination  about  Mr.  Irving  that  drew  every  living 
creature  towards  him.  His  personal  character,  like  his  writings,  was 
distinguished  by  extreme  modesty,  sweetness,  and  simplicity.  "He  was 
never  willing  to  set  forth  his  own  pretensions,"  wrote  a  friend,  after  his 
death  ;   "  he  was  willing  to  leave  to  the  public  the  care  of  his  literary 


THE    HUDSON.  349 


reputation.  He  had  no  taste  for.  controTersy  of  any  sort ;  his  manners 
were  mild,  and  his  conversation,  in  the  society  of  those  with  whom  he 
was  intimate,  was  most  genial  and  playful."  James  Russell  Lowell  has 
given  the  following  admirahle  outline  of  his  character  : — 

■•  But  allow  me  to  speak  what  I  humbly  feel, — 
To  a  true  poet-heart  add  the  fun  of  Dick  Steele 
Throw  in  all  of  Addison,  minus  the  chill ; 
With  the  whole  of  that  partnership's  stock  and  good-will. 
Mix  well,  and  while  stirring,  hum  o'er  as  a  spell. 
The  tine  old  English  Gentleman  ;  simmer  it  well. 
Sweeten  just  to  j'our  own  private  liking,  then  strain, 
That  only  the  finest  and  purest  remain ; 
Let  it  stand  out  of  doors  till  a  soul  it  receives 
From  the  wnmi,  lazy  sun  loitering  down  through  green  leaves, 
.4nd  you'll  find  a  choice  nature,  not  wholly  desen'iug 
•  A  name  either  Enf;:lish  or  Yankee — just  Irving." 

I  must  remember  that  I  am  not  writing  an  eulogy  of  Mr.  Irving,  hut 
only  giving  a  few  outlines  with  pen  and  pencil  of  his  late  home  on  the 
hanks  of  the  Hudson.  Around  that  home  sweetest  memories  will  ever 
cluster,  and  the  pilgrim  to  Sunnyside  will  rejoice  to  honour  those  who 
made  that  home  so  delightful  to  their  idol,  and  who  justly  find  a  place 
in  the  sunny  recollections  of  the  departed. 

Around  that  cottage,  and  the  adjacent  lands  and  waters,  Irving's  genius 
has  cast  an  atmosphere  of  romance.  The  old  Dutch  house — one  of  the 
oldest  in  all  that  region — out  of  which  grew  that  quaint  cottage,  was  a 
part  of  the  veritable  Wolfert's  Roost — the  very  dwelling  wherein  occurred 
Katrina  Van  Tassel's  memorable  quilting  frolic,  that  terminated  so 
disastrously  to  lehahod  Crane,  in  his  midnight  race  with  the  Headless 
Horseman  of  Sleepy  Hollow.  There,  too,  the  veracious  Dutch  historian, 
Diedrich  Knickerbocker,  domiciled  while  he  was  deciphering  the  precious 
documents  found  there,  "  which,  like  the  lost  books  of  Livy,  had  baffled 
the  research  of  former  historians."  But  its  appearance  had  sadly  changed 
when  it  was  purchased  by  Mr.  Irving,  about  thirty  years  ago,  and  was 
by  him  restored  to  the  original  form  of  the  Roost,  which  he  describes  as 
"  a  little,  old-fashioned  stone  mansion,  all  made  up  of  gable  ends,  and  as 
full  of  angles  and  corners  as  an  old  cocked  hat.  It  is  said,  in  fact," 
continues  Mr.  Irving,  "to  have  been  modelled  after  the  cocked  hat  of 
Peter  the  Headstrong,  as  the  Esourial  was  modelled  after  the  gridiron  of 


350 


THE    HUDSON. 


the  blessed  St.  Lawrence."  It  \yas  built,  tbe  chronicler  tells  us,  by 
Wolfert  Acker,  a  privy  councillor  of  Peter  Stuyvesant,  "a  worthy,  but 
ill-starred  man,  whose  aim.  through  life  had  been  to  live  in  peace  and 
quiet."  He  sadly  failed.  "It  was  his  doom,  in  fact,  to  meet  a  head 
wind  at  every  turn,  and  be  kept  in  a  constant  fume  and  fi'ct  by  the 
perverseness  of  mankind.  Had  he  served  on  a  modern  jury,  he  would 
have  been  sure  to  have  eleven  unreasonable  men  opposed  to  him."  He 
retired  in  disgust  to  this  then  wilderness,  built  the  gabled  house,  and 


WOLFEET'S   BOOST   IVHE.N    lUVINti   PURCHASED   IT. 

"inscribed  over  the  door  (his  teeth  clenched  at  the  time)  his  favourite 
Dutch  motto,  'Lust  in  Eust'  (pleasure  in  quiet).  The  mansion  was 
thence  called  Wolfert's  Eust  (Wolfert's  Eest),  but  by  the  uneducated, 
who  did  not  understand  Dutch,  Wolfert's  Eoost."  It  passed  into  the 
hands  of  Jacob  Van  Tassel,  a  valiant  Dutchman,  who  espoused  the  cause 
of  the  Eepublicans.  The  hostile  ships  of  the  British  were  often  seen  in 
Tappan  Bay,  in  front  of  the  lloost,  and  Cow  Boys  infested  the  land 
thereabout.  Van  Tassel  had  much  trouble :  his  house  was  finally 
plundered  and  burnt,  and  he  was  carried  a  prisoner  to  New  York.    When 


■^m^} 


THE    HUDSON.  351 


the  war  was  over,  ho  rebuilt  the  Eoost,  but  in  more  modest  style,  as  seen 
in  our  sketch.  "The  Indian  spring" — the  one  brought  from  Rotterdam 
— "still  welled  up  at  the  bottom  of  the  green  bank;  and  the  wild 
brook,  wild  as  ever,  came  babbling  down  the  ravine,  and  threw  itself 
into  the  little  cove  where  of  yore  the  water-guard  harboured  their 
whale-boats." 

The  "water-guard"  was  an  aquatic  corps,  in  the  pay  of  the  revolu- 
tionary government,  organised  to  range  the.  waters  of  the  Hudson,  and 
keep  watch  upon  the  movements  of  the  British.  The  Eoost,  according 
to  the  chronicler,  was  one  of  the  lurking-places  of  this  band,  and  Van 
Tassel  was  one  of  their  best  friends.  He  was,  moreover,  fond  of  warring 
upon  his  "  own  hook."  He  possessed  a  famous  "  goose-gun,"  that  would 
send  its  shot  half-way  across  Tappan  Bay.  "When  the  belligerent 
feeling  was  strong  upon  Jacob,"  says  the  chronicler  of  the  Boost,  "  he 
would  take  down  his  gun,  sally  forth  alone,  and  prowl  along  shore, 
dodging  behind  rocks  and  trees,  watching  for  hours  together  any  ship  or 
galley  at  anchor  or  becalmed.  So  sure  as  a  boat  approached  the  shore, 
bang  !  went  the  great  goose-gun,  sending  on  board  a  shower  of  slugs  and 
buck  shot." 

On  one  occasion,  Jacob  and  some  follow  bush-fighters  peppered  a 
British  transport  that  had  run  aground.  "This,"  says  the  chronicler, 
"  was  the  last  of  Jacob's  triumphs  ;  he  fared  like  some  heroic  spider  that 
has  unwittingly  ensnared  a  hornet,  to  the  utter  ruin  of  its  web.  It  was 
not  long  after  the  above  exploit  that  he  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy, 
in  the  course  of  one  of  his  forays,  and  was  carried  away  prisoner  to  New 
York.  The  Roost  itself,  as  a  pestilent  rebel  nest,  was  marked  out  for 
signal  punishment.  The  cock  of  the  Roost  being  captive,  there  was  none 
to  garrison  it  but  his  stout-hearted  spouse,  his  redoubtable  sister,  Notchie 
Van  Wurmer,  and  Dinah,  a  strapping  negro  wench.  An  armed  vessel 
came  to  anchor  in  front ;  a  boat  full  of  men  pulled  to  shore.  The 
garrison  flew  to  arms,  that  is  to  say,  to  mops,  broomsticks,  shovels, 
tongs,  and  all  kinds  of  domestic  weapons,  for,  unluckily,  the  great  piece 
of  ordnance,  the  goose-gun,  was  absent  with  its  owner.  Above  all,  a 
vigorous  defence  was  made  with  that  most  potent  of  female  weapons,  the 
tongue  ;  never  did  invaded  hen-roost  make  a  more  vociferous  outcry.     It 


352 


THE    HUDSON. 


was  all  in  yain !  The  house  was  sacked  and  plundered,  fire  was  set  to 
each  room,  and  in  a  few  moments  its  blaze  shed  a  baleful  light  over  the 
Tappan  Sea.  The  invaders  then  pounced  upon  the  blooming  Laney  Van 
Tassel,  the  beauty'  of  the  Eoost,  and  endeavoured  to  bear  her  off  to  the 
boat.  But  here  was  the  real  tug  of  war.  The  mother,  the  aunt,  and  the 
strapping  negro  wench,  all  flew  to  the  rescue.  The  struggle  continued 
down  to  the  very  water's  edge,  when  a  voice  from  the  armed  vessel  at 
anchor  ordered  the  spoilers  to  desist;  they  relinquished  their  prize, 
jumped  into  their  boats,  and  pulled  off,  and  the  heroine  of  the  lioost 
escaped  with  a  mere  rumpling  of  the  feathers." 


CHAT  TEE    XIX. 

LOSE  by  Sunnyside  is  one  of  those  marvellous  villages 
witli  ■which  America  abounds :  it  has  sprung  up  like  a 
mushroom,  and  bears  the  name  of  Irvington,  in  com- 
pliment to  the  late  master  of  Sunnyside.  A  dozen 
years  ago  not  a  solitary  house  was  there,  excepting 
tliat  of  Mr.  Dearman,  the  farmer  who  owned  the  land.  Pier- 
mont,  directly  opposite,  was  then  the  sole  eastern  terminus  of 
the  great  New  York  and  Erie  Railway,  and  here  seemed  to  be 
an  eligible  place  for  a  village,  as  the  Hudson  River  Railway 
was  then  almost  completed.  Mr.  Dearman  had  one  surveyed 
upon  his  lands  ;  streets  were  marked  out,  village  lots  were  measured  and 
defined ;  sales  at  enormous  prices,  which  enriched  the  owner,  were  made, 
and  now  upon  that  farm,  in  pleasant  cottages,  surrounded  by  neat 
gardens,  several  hundred  inhabitants  are  dwelling.  One  of  the  most 
picturesque  of  the  station-hoxiscs  upon  the  Hudson  River  Railway  is 
there,  and  a  ferry  connects  the  village  with  Piermont.  Morning  and 
evening,  when  the  trains  depart  for  and  arrive  from  New  York,  many 
handsome  vehicles  may  be  seen  there.  This  all  seems  like  the  work  of 
magic.  Over  this  beautiful  slope,  where  so  few  years  ago  the  voyager 
upon  the  Hudson  saw  only  woodlands  and  cultivated  fields,  is  now  a 
popidous  town.  The  owners  are  chiefly  business  men  of  Ifew  York, 
whose  counting  rooms  and  parlours  are  within  less  than  an  hour  of  each 
other. 

Less  than  a  mile  below  Irvington,  and  about  half  way  between  that 
village  and  Dobbs's  Ferry,  is  the  beautiful  estate  of  Nevis,  the  home  and 
property  of  the  Honourable  James  A.  Hamilton,  eldest  surviving  son  of 
the  celebrated  General  Alexander  Hamilton,  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
republic  of  the  United  States."^'     It  stands  on  the  brow  of  the  river  slope, 

*  Nevis  is  the  name  of  one  of  a  group  of  the  Antilles,  where  General  Hamilton  was  bonl. 

Z    Z 


354 


TUE    HUDSON. 


in  the  midst  of  a  charming  lawn,  that  extends  from  the  highway  to  the 
Hudson,  a  distance  of  half  a  mile,  and  commands  some  of  the  finest  and 
most  extensive  views  of  that  portion  of  the  river.  The  mansion  is  large, 
and  its  interior  elegant.  It  presents  many  attractions  to  the  lover  of 
literature  and  art,  aside  from-  the  delightful  social  atmosphere  with 
which  it  is  filled.  There  may  be  seen  the  library  of  General  Hamilton, 
one  of  the  choicest  and  most  extensiv-e  in  the  country  at  the  time  of  his 
death.     There,  too,  may  be  seen  a  portrait  of  "Washington,  by  Stuart, 


VlliW  AT   IBVl.XGTO.V. 


painted  for  General  Hamilton,  in  1798,  when,  in  expectation  of  a  war 
with  France,  the  United  States  organised  a  provisional  government,  and 
appointed  him  acting  commanding  general  under  the  ex-president 
(Washington),  who  consented  to  be  the  chief. 

On  the  river  bank  of  the  Nevis  estate  is  a  charming  little  cottage, 
completely  embowered,  where  Mr.  Irving  was  a  frequent  and  delighted 


*  From  this  point  the  traveller  isoiilhward  first  obtains  a  good  view  of  the  Palisades  on  the  west  side 
of  the  river. 


^'' 


THE   HUDSON. 


355 


visitor.  It  is  tlie  siimmer  residence  of  Mr.  Schuyler  (a  grandson  of 
General  Schuyler),  Mr.  Hamilton's  son-in-law.  Near  it  is  a  more 
pretentious  residence  belonging  to  Mr.  Ijlatchford,  another  son-in-law  of 
the  proprietor  of  "  Nevis."  Within  call  of  these  pleasant  retreats  is  the 
superb  residence  of  Mr.  Cottinet,  a  wealthy  New  York  merchant,  buUt  in 
French    style,    of   Caen    stone.     This,    in    point    of   complete    elegance. 


externally  and  internally,  is  doubtless  superior  to  any  other  dwelling  on 
the  banks  of  the  Hudson.  The  grounds  about  it  are  laid  out  with  much 
taste,  and  exhibit  many  delightful  landscape  effects. 

Dobbs's  Ferry,  a  considerable  village,  twenty-two  miles  from  New 
York,  was  a  place  of  some  note  a  century  ago ;  but  the  town  has  been 
mostly  built  within  the  last  fifteen  years.     The  Indian  name  was   Weec- 


356 


THE    HUDSON. 


qites-ffuck,  signifying  the  place  of  the  Eiirk  Kettle.  Its  present  name  is 
from  Dobbs,  a  Swede  from  the  Delaware,  one  of  the  earliest  settlers  on 
Philipse's  Manor.  The  village  is  seated  pleasantly  on  the  river  front  of 
the  Greenburgh  Hills,  and  is  the  place  of  summer  residence  for  many  New 
York  families.  Here  active  and  important  military  operations  occurred 
during  the  war  for  independence.  There  was  no  fighting  here,  but  in  the 
movement  of  armies  it  was  an  important  point.  Upon  the  high  bank,  a 
little  south-east  from  the  railway  station,  a  redoubt  was  built  by  the 


Vll.U'    Al'    i^UliiiSa  lliKKi. 


Americans  at  an  early  period  of  the  war.  Tiom  near  that  spot  our  little 
sketch  was  taken,  which  included  the  long  pier  at  Piermont,  the  village 
of  Nyack,  and  the  range  of  hills  just  below  Haverstraw,  off  which  the 
Vulture  lay,  and  at  the  foot  of  which  Arnold  and  Andre  met.  Several 
other  redoubts  were  cast  up  in  this  vicinity ;  these  commanded  the  ferry 
to  Paramus,  afterwards  Sneden's  Landing,  and  now  Rockland. 

Near  Dobbs's  Ferry  the  British  rendezvoued,  after  the  battle  at  White 
Plains,  in  October,  1770;  and  at  Hastings,  a  mile  below,  a  British  force 
of  six  thousand  men,  under  Lord  Cornwallis,  crossed  the  river  to  Paramus, 


TEE    HUDSON. 


357 


marched  to  the  attack  at  Fort  Lee,  and  then  pursued  the  flying  Americans 
under  "Washington  across  New  Jersey  to  the  Delaware  river.  Here,  in 
1777,  a  division  of  the  American  army,  under  General  Lincoln,  was 
encamped  ;  and  here  was  the  spot  first  appointed  as  the  meeting-place  of 
Andre  and  Arnold.  Circumstances  prevented  the  meeting,  and  it  was 
postponed,  as  we  have  already  observed.  Here,  in  the  mansion  of  Van 
Brugh  Livingston,  General  Greene  met  the  chief  of  three  commissioners 
from  General  Sir  Hemy  Clinton,  in  conference  concerning  Major  Andre. 


\  ll':n     -N  tAK   liAbllMi 


General  Robertson  was  the  thief,  and  he  had  strong  hopes,  by  imparting 
information  from  General  Clinton,  to  save  the  life  of  his  young  friend. 
Beverly  Robinson  accompanied  them  as  a  witness.  They  went  up  in  the 
Greyhound  schooner,  with  a  flag  of  truce,  but  only  General  Robertson  was 
permitted  to  land.  Greene  met  Robertson  as  a  private  gentleman,  by 
permission  of  "Washington,  and  not  as  an  ofiBccr.  He  was  willing  to  listen, 
but  the  case  of  an  acknowledged  spy  admitted  of  no  discussion.  The 
subject  was  freely  talked  over,  and  Greene  bore  from  Robertson  a  verbal 
message  to  "W"ashington,  and  a  long  explanatory  and  threatening  letter 


358 


THE   HUDSON. 


from  Arnold.  No  new  facts  bearing  upon  the  case  were  presented,  and 
nothing  was  offered  that  changed  the  minds  of  the  court  or  the  command- 
ing general.     So  the  conference  was  fruitless. 

The  Livingston  mansion,  owned  by  Stephen  Archer,  a  Quaier,  is 
preserved  in  its  original  form ;  under  its  roof,  in  past  times,  many 
distinguished   men   have   been   sheltered.     Washington    had   his   head- 


LIVINGSTON  MANSION. 


quarters  there  towards  the  close  of  the  revolution ;  and  there,  in  November, 
1783,  Washington,  George  Clinton,  "the  civil  governor  of  the  State  of 
New  York,"  and  Sir  Guy  CarJeton,  the  British  commander,  met  to  confer 
on  the  subject  of  prisoners,  the  loyalists,  and  the  evacuation  of  the  city  of 
New  York  by  the  British  forces.  The  former  came  down  the  river  from 
Newburg,  with  their  suites,  in  barges  ;  the  latter,  with  his  suite,  came 


17?  I 


THE    HUDSON. 


359 


up  from  Xcw  York  in  a  frigate.     Four  pompanii-s  of  American  light 
infantry  performed  the  duties  of  a  guard  of  honour  on  that  occasion. 
Opposite  Dohbs's  Ferry  and  Hastings  is  the  most  picturesque  portion  of 


2  III-:   PALISAltl-t. 


the  "  Palisades,"  to  which  allusion  has  several  times  been  made.     These 
are  portions  of  a  ridge  of  trap-rocks  extending  along  the  western  shore  of 


360 


THE    HUDSOK. 


the  Hudson  from  near  Haverstraw  almost  to  Hoboken,  a  distance  of  about 
thirty-five  miles.  Between  Piermont  and  Hoboken,  these  rocks  present, 
for  a  considerable  distance,  an  uninterrupted,  rude,  columnar  front,  from 
300  to  500  feet  in  height.  They  form  a  mural  escarpment,  columnar  in  ap- 
pearance, yet  not  actually  so  in  form.  They  have  a  steep  slope  of  dchris, 
which  has  been  crumbling  from  the  cliffs  above,  during  long  centuries,  by 
the  action  of  frost  and  the  elements.  The  ridge  is  narrow,  being  in  some 
places  not  more  than  three-fourths  of  a  mile  in  width.  It  is  really  an 
enormous  projecting  trap-dyke.  On  the  top  and  among  the  dcbrin,  in 
many  places,  is  a  thin  growth  of  trees.  On  the  western  and  southern 
sides  of  the  range,  the  slope  is  gentle,  and  composed  generally  of  rich  soil 
covered  with  trees.  Below  Tappan  it  descends  to  a  rich  valley,  through 
which  a  railway  now  passes. 

Viewed  from  the  river  this  range  presents  a  forbidding  aspect ;  and  little 
does  the  traveller  dream  of  a  fertile,  smiling  country  at  the  back  of  this 
savage  front.  Several  little  valleys  break  through  the  range,  and  give 
glimpses  of  the  hidden  landscape  beauties  behind  the  great  wall.  In  the 
bottoms  of  these  the  trap-dyke  appears;  so  the  valleys  are  only  depressions 
in  the  range,  not  fractures. 

Several  bluffs  in  the  range  exceed  400  feet  in  height.  The  most 
elevated  of  all  is  one  nearly  opposite  Sing-Sing,  which  juts  into  the  river 
like  an  enormous  buttress,  and  is  a  prominent  object  from  every  point  on 
the  Hudson  between  New  York  and  the  Highlands.  It  rises  660  feet 
above  tide-water.  The  Dutch  named  it  Verdrietigh-Uoech — Grievous  or 
Vexations  Point  or  Angle — because  in  navigating  the  river  they  were  apt 
to  meet  suddenly,  off  this  point,  adverse  and  sometimes  cross  winds,  that 
gave  them  much  vexation.  The  Palisades  present  a  most  remarkable 
feature  in  the  scenery  of  the  Lower  Hudson. 

Yonkcrs  is  tlie  name  of  a  large  and  rapidly-growing  village  about  four 
miles  below  Hastings,  and  seventeen  from  New  York.  Its  recent  growth 
and  prosperity  are  almost  wholly  due  to  the  Hudson  Eiver  Railway,  whicli 
furnishes  such  travelling  facilities  and  accommodations,  that  hundreds  of 
buiuess  men  in  the  city  of  New  York  have  chosen  it  for  their  summer 
residences,  and  many  of  them  for  their  permanent  dw.elling-places.  Like 
Sing-Sing,  Tarrytown,  Irvington,  and  Dobbs's  Ferry,  it  has  a  hilly  and 


I 


I 


THE    HUDSON.  361 


exceedingly  picturesque  country  around ;  and  through  it  the  dashing 
Neperah,  or  Saw-Mill  River,  after  flowing  many  miles  among  the 
Greenburgh  hills,  finds  its  way  into  the  Hudson  in  a  series  of  rapids  and 
cascades.     It  forms  a  merry  feature  in  the  scenery  of  the  village. 

Tonkcrs  derives  its  name  from  Yonkheer — Young  Master  or  Lord — the 
common  appellation  for  the  heir  of  a  Dutch  family.  It  is  an  old 
settlement,  lands  having  been  pui'chased  here  from  the  sachems  by  some 
of  the  Dutch  West  India  Company  as  early  as  the  beginning  of  Peter 
Stuyvesant's  administration  of  the  affairs  of  New  Netherland.*  Here  was 
the  Indian  village  of  N<ij}-pe-cJia-mak,  a  name  signifying  "the  rapid  water 
settlement."  This  was  the  name  of  the  stream,  afterwards  corrupted  to 
Neperah,  and  changed  by  the  Dutch  and  English  to  Saw-Mill  Iliver. 
Those  utilitarian  fathers  have  much  to  answer  for,  because  they  expelled 
from  our  geographical  vocabulary  so  many  of  the  beautiful  and  significant 
Indian  names. 

To  the  resident,  the  visitor,  and  the  tourist,  the  scenery  about  Yonkers 
is  most  attractive ;  and  the  delightful  roads  in  all  directions  invite 
equestrian  and  carriage  excursionists  to  real  pleasure.  Those  fond  of 
boating  and  bathing,  fishing  and  fowling,  may  here  find  gratification 
at  proper  seasons,  within  a  half-hour's  ride,  by  railway,  from  the 
metropolis. 

The  chief  attraction  at  Yonkers  for  the  antiquaiy  is  the  Philipse  Manor 
HaU,  a  spacious  stone  edifice,  that  once  belonged  to  the  lords  of  Philipse 
Manor.  The  older  portion  was  built  in  1682.  The  present  front,  forming 
an  addition,  was  erected  in  1745,  when  old  "Castle  Philipse,"  at  Sleepy 
Hollow,  was  abandoned,  and  the  Manor  Hall  became  the  favourite 
dwelling  of  the  family.  Its  interior  construction  (preserved  by  the  present 
owner,  the  Hon.  "W.  W.  "Woodworth,  with  scrupulous  care)  attests  the 
wealth  and  taste  of  the  lordly  proprietor.     The  great  Hall,  or  passage,  is 

*  Tlie  domain  iucluded  in  the  towns  of  Yonkers.  West  Farms,  and  JIoiTisania  was  purdiased  of  the 
Indians  by  Adi-iaen  Van  der  Donck,  the  "firstlawj-ei-  in  New  Netherland,"  and  contirmed  to  him  in 
1616  by  grant  from  the  Dutch  West  India  Company,  with  the  title  and  pjivilege  of  Patroon.  It  con- 
tained 24,000  acres.  He  called  it  Colen  Donck,  or  Donck's  Colony.  Van  der  Bonck,  who  died  in  16.35, 
was  an  active  man  in  New  Amsterdam  (now  New  York),  and  took  part  with  tire  people  against  lite 
governor  when  disputes  arose.  He  wrote  an  interesting  description  of  tlie  country.  After  the  English 
conquest  of  New  Netherland,  Frederick  Philipse  and  others  pmcliased  a  greater  portion  of  llis  estate  on 
tlie  Hudson  and  Harlem  rivers. 

3    A 


362 


THE    HUDSON. 


broad,  and  the  staircase  capacious  and  massive.  The  rooms  are  large, 
and  the  ceilings  are  lofty ;  all  the  rooms  are  wainscoted,  and  the  chief 
apartment  has  beautiful  ornamental  -work  upon  the  ceiling,  in  high  relief, 
composed  of  arabesque  forms,  the  figures  of  birds,  dogs,  and  men,  and 
two  medallion  portraits.  Two  of  the  rooms  have  carved  chimney-pieces 
of  grey  Irish  marble.     The  guest-chamber,  over  the  drawing-room,  is 


PIIILIPSE  MANOR  IT a;  I, 


handsomely  decorated  with  ornamental  architecture,  and  some  of  tlie  fire- 
places are  surrounded  with  borders  of  ancient  Dutch  tiles.  The  well  has 
a  subteiTanean  passage  leading  from  it,  nobody  knows  to  where  ;  and  the 
present  ice-house,  seen  on  the  right  of  the  picture,  composed  of  huge 
walls  and  massive  arch,  was  a  powder-magazine  in  the  "  olden  time." 
Altogether,  this  old  hall — one  of  the  antiquities  of  the  Hudson — is  an 


THE   HUDSON. 


363 


attractive  curiosity,  whicli  the  obliging  proprietor  is  pleased  to  show  to 
those  who  visit  it  because  of  their  reverence  for  things  of  the  past.  It 
possesses  a  bit  of  romance,  too ;  for  here  was  born,  and  here  lived,  Mary 
rhilipsc,  whose  charms  captivated  the  heart  of  young  "Washington,  but 
whose  hand  was  given  to  another,  as  we  shall  observe  hereafter. 

In  the  river,  in  front  of  Yonkers,  the  Half-Moon,  Henry  Hudson's 


'  IIALI-'-MOOX." 


exploring  vessel,  made  her  second  anchorage  after  leaving  New  York  Bay. 
It  was  toward  the  evening  of  the  12th  of  September,  1609  ;  the  explorer 
had  then  been  several  days  in  the  vicinity  of  J/8?i-Ha-/(fir<-fe,  as  the  Indians 
called  the  island  on  which  New  York  stands,  and  had  had  some  inter- 
course with  the  natives.  "  The  twelfth,"  says  "  Master  Ivet  (Juet)  of 
the  Lime  Ilouse,"  who  wrote  Hudson's  journal,  "  faire  and  hot.     In  the 


304 


TnE    HUDSON. 


afternoon,  at  two  of  the  clockc,  wee  weighed,  the  windc  being  variable, 
betwcene  the  north  and  the  north-west.  So  we  turned  into  the  Riuer 
two  leagues,  and  anchored.  This  morning,  at  ovr  first  rode  in  the  Eiuer, 
there  came  eight-and-twentie  Canoes  full  of  men,  women,  and  children,  to 
betray  vs ;  but  we  saw  their  intent,  and  suffered  hone  of  them  to  come 
abord  of  vs.  At  twclue  of  the  clocke  they  departed ;  they  brought  with 
them  Oysters  and  Beanes,  whereof  wcc  bought  some.  They  have  great 
tobacco-pipes  of  Yellow  Copper,  and  Pots  of  Earth  to  dresse  their  raeate 
in."  That  night  a  strong  tidal  current  placed  the  stern  oi  the  ITalf-Moon 
up  stream.  That  event,  and  the  assurance  of  the  natives  that  the  waters 
northward,  upon  which  he  had  gazed  with  wonder  and  delight,  came 
from  far  beyond  the  mountains,  inspired  Hudson  with  great  hope,  for  it 
must  be  remembered  that  his  errand  was  the  discovery  of  a  northern 
passage  to  India.  He  now  doubted  not  that  the  great  river  upon  which 
he  was  floating  flowed  from  ocean  to  ocean,  and  that  his  search  was  nearly 
over,  and  would  be  speedily  crowned  with  success. 

A  mile  and  a  half  below  Yonkers,  on  the  bank  of  the  Hudson,  is  Font 
Hill,  formerly  the  residence  of  Edwin  Forrest,  the  eminent  American 
tragedian.  The  mansion  is  built  of  blue  granite,  in  the  English  castel- 
lated form,  a  stylo  not  wholly  in  keeping  with  the  scenery  around  it.  It 
would  have  been  peculiarly  appropriate  and  imposing  among  the  rugged 
hills  of  the  Highlands  thirty  or  forty  miles  above.  The  building  has  six 
towers,  from  which  very  extensive  views  of  the  Hudson  and  the  sur- 
rounding country  may  be  obtained.  The  flag,  or  stair  tower,  is  seventy- 
one  feet  in  height. 

To  this  delightful  residence  Mr.  Forrest  brought  his  bride.  Miss 
Catherine  Sinclair,  daughter  of  the  celebrated  Scotch  vocalist,  in  1838, 
and  for  six  years  they  enjoyed  domestic  and  professional  life  in  an  eminent 
degree.  Unfortunately  for  his  future  peace,  Mr.  Forrest  was  induced  to 
visit  England  in  1844.  He  was  accompanied  by  his  wife.  There  he 
soon  became  involved  in  a  bitter  dispute  with  the  dramatic  critic  of  the 
London  Examiner,  and  Macready  the  actor.  This  quarrel  led  to  the 
most  serious  results.  Out  of  it  were  developed  the  mob  and  the  bloodshed 
of  what  is  known,  in  the  social  history  of  the  city  of  New  York,  as  the 
"Astor  Place  Riot,"  and  with  it  commenced   Mr.   Forrest's   domestic 


THE   HUDSON. 


365 


troubles,  wliicli  ended,  as  all  the  world  knows,  in  the  permanent  separa- 
tion, of  himself  and  wife.  Font  Hill,  where  he  had  enjoyed  so  much 
happiness,  lost  its  charms,  and  he  sold  it  to  the  Roman  Catholic  Sisters  of 


XOM'  HILL. 


Charity,  of  the  Convent  and  Academy  of  Mount  St.  Y  lucent.  This  insti- 
tution was  founded  in  1847,  and  the  academy  was  in  105th  Street,  between 
the  Fifth  and  Sixth  Avenues,  New  York.     It  is  devoted  to  the  instruction 


366 


THE    HUDSON. 


of  young  ladies.  The  community,  numbering  about  two  hundi-ed  Sisters 
at  the  time  of  my  visit,  was  scattered.  Some  were  at  Font  Hill,  and 
others  were  at  diiferent  places  in  the  city  and  neighbourhood.  The  whole 
were  under  tlie  general  direction  of  Mother  Superior  Mary  Angela  Hughes. 
At  Font  Hill  they  erected  an  extensive  and  elegant  pile  of  buildings,  of 
which  tlicy  took  possession,  and  wherein  they  opened  u  sthcol,   on  the 


MOUNT   ST.  VIKCENT  ACAIIEMV. 


1st  of  September,  1859.  It  was  much  enlarged  in  1860.  They  had,  in 
1860,  about  one  hundred  and  fifty  pupils,  all  boarders,  to  whom  was 
offered  the  opportunity  of  acquiring  a  thorough  education.  The  chaplain 
of  the  in.stitution  occupies  the  "castle." 

Two  miles  and  a-half  below  Font  Hill,  or  Mount  St.  Vincent,  is  Spyt 
den  Duyvel  Creek,  at  the  head  of  York  or  Manhattan  Island.     This  is  a 


THE    i;UDSON. 


367 


narrow  stream,  ■winding  through  a  little  tortuous  valley  for  a  mile  or 
more,  and  connecting,  at  Kingsbridge,  with  the  Harlem  River,  the 
first  formed  by  the  inflowing  of  the  tide  waters  of  the  Hudson,  and 
the  last,  by  the  waters  of  the  East  River.  At  ebb-tide  the  currents 
part  at  Kingsbridge.  The  view  from  the  mouth  of  the  Spyt  den 
Duyvel,  over  which  the  Hudson  River  Railway  passes,  looking  either 


fcPiT  DEN   UL'VVEL  CREl.K. 


across  the  river  to  the  Palisades,  as  given  in  our  sketch,  or  inland, 
embracing  bold  Berrian's  Neck  on  the  left,  and  the  wooded  head  of 
Manhattan  Island  on  the  right,  with  the  winding  creek,  the  cultivated 
ridge  on  the  borders  of  Harlem  River,  and  the  heights  of  Fordham 
beyond,  present  pleasant  scenes  for  the  artist's  pencil.  To  these 
natural  scenes,  history  and  romance  lend  the  charm  of  their  associations. 


368 


THE   HUDSON. 


Here,  on  the  2nd  of  October,  1608,  Henry  Hudson  had  a  severe  fight 
with  the  Indians,  who  attacked  the  Half-Moon  with  arrows  from  canoes 
and  the  points  of  land,  as  she  lay  at  anchor  in  the  sheltering  mouth  of 
the  creek.  Here,  too,  while  Governor  Stuyvesaat  was  absent  on  the 
Delaware,  nine  hundred  of  the  river  Indians  encamped,  and  menaced  the 
little  town  of  New  Amsterdam,  at  the  lower  extremity  of  the  island,  with 
destruction.  Here,  according  to  Diedrick  Knickerbocker's  "  History  of 
New  York,"  Anthony  Van  Corlear,  the  trumpeter  of  Governor  Stuyvesant, 
lost  his  life  in  attempting  to  swim  across  the  creek  during  a  violent  storm. 
"  The  wind  was  high,"  says  the  chronicler,  "the  elements  were  in  an 
uproar,  and  no  Charon  could  be  found  to  ferry  the  adventurous  sounder 
of  brass  across  the  water.  For  a  short  time  he  vapoured  like  an  impatient 
ghost  upon  the  brink,  and  then  bethinking  himself  of  the  urgency  of  his 
errand  (to  arouse  the  people  to  arms),  he  took  a  hearty  embrace  of  his 
stone  bottle,  swore  most  valorously  that  he  would  swim  across  in  spite  of 
the  devil  {en  spyt  den  duyvel),  and  daringly  plunged  into  the  stream. 
Luckless  Anthony !  Scarcely  had  ho  buffeted  half  way  over,  when  he 
was  observed  to  struggle  violently,  as  if  battling  with  the  Spirit  of  the 
waters.  Instinctively  he  put  his  trumpet  to  his  mouth,  and  giving  a 
vehement  blast,  sank  for  ever  to  the  bottom !  The  clangour  of  his  trumpet, 
like  that  of  the  ivory  horn  of  the  renowned  Paladin  Orlando,  when  ex- 
piring in  the  glorious  field  of  Eoncesvalles,  rang  far  and  wide  through 
the  country,  alarming  the  neighbours  round,  who  hurried  in  amazement 
to  the  spot.  Here  an  old  Dutch  burgher,  famed  for  his  veracity,  and 
who  had  been  a  witness  of  the  fact,  related  to  them  the  melancholy 
affair ;  with  the  fearful  addition  (to  which  I  am  slow  in  giving  belief), 
that  he  saw  the  Duyvel,  in  the  shape  of  a  huge  moss-bonker  (a  species 
of  inferior  fish)  seize  the  sturdy  Anthony  by  the  leg,  and  drag  him 
beneath  the  waves.  Certain  it  is,  the  place,  with  the  adjoining  pro- 
montory, which  projects  into  Hudson,  has  been  called  Spijt  den 
Duyvel  ever  since." 

During  the  war  for  independence,  stirring  events  occurred  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  Spyt  den  Duyvel  Creek.  Batteries  were  erected  on  pro- 
montories on  each  side  of  it,  at  its  junction  with  the  Hudson;  and  in 
Westchester  County,  in  its  immediate  neighbourhood,  many  skirmishes 


THE   HUDSON. 


369 


took  place  between  Cow  Boys  and.  Skinners,  Whigs  and  Tories,  British, 
Hessians,  and  Indians. 

A  picturesque  road  passes  along  the  foot  of  the  "Westchester  hills  that 
skirt  the  Spyt  den  Duyvel  Valley,  to  the  mouth  of  Tippett's  Creek,  which 
comes  flowing  down  from  the  north  through  a  delightful  valley,  at  the 
back  of  Yonkers  and  the  neighbouring  settlements.  This  creek  was  called 
Mush-u-la  by  the  Indians,  and  the  valley  was  the  favourite  residence  of  a 
warlike  Mohegan  tribe.  Its  lower  portion  was  the  scene  of  almost  con- 
tinual skirmishing  during  a  portion  of  the  war  for  independence. 


THE  CEXTUEY  HOUSE. 


Tippett's  Creek  is  crossed  by  a  low  bridge.  A  few  yards  beyond  it  is 
Kingsbridge,  at  the  head  of  the  Harlem  Eiver,  which  here  suddenly  ex- 
pands into  lake-like  proportions.  The  shores  on  both  sides  are  beautiful, 
and  the  view  that  opens  towards  Long  Island,  beyond  the  East  Eiver,  is 
charming. 

Kingsbridge  has  always  been  a  conspicuous  point.  Land  was  granted 
there,  in  1693,  to  Frederick  Philipse,  with  power  to  erect  a  toll-bridge, 
it  being  specified  that  it  should  be  called  The  Jung's  Bridge.     This  was 

3   B 


370  THE    HUDSON. 


the  only  bridge  that  connected  Manhattan  Island  -with  the  Main,  and 
hence  all  travellers  and  troops  were  compelled  to  cross  it,  unless  they  had 
boats  for  ferrying.  Here,  during  the  war  for  independence,  hostile  forces 
were  frequently  confronted  ;  and  from  its  northern  end  to  the  Croton 
river,  was  the  famous  "Neutral  Ground"  during  the  struggle,  whereon 
neither  Whig  nor  Tory  could  live  in  peace  or  safety.  Upon  the  heights 
each  side  of  the  bridge  redoubts  were  thrown  up  ;  and  here,  in  January, 
1777,  a  bloody  conflict  occurred  between  the  Americans,  imder  General 
Heath,  and  a  large  body  of  Hessian  mercenaries,  under  General  Knyphausen. 
The  place  was  held  alternately  by  the  Americans  and  British  ;  and  little 
more  than  half  a  mile  below  the  bridge  an  ancient  story-and-a-half  house 
is  yet  standing,  one  hundred  and  twenty-five  years  old,  which  served  as 
head-quarters  at  different  times  for  the  officers  of  the  two  armies :  it  is 
now  a  house  of  public  entertainment,  and  is  known  as  "  Post's  Century 
House." 


CHAPTEll      XX. 

|HE  Harlem  Eiver  (called  Mtis-coo-ia  by  the  Indians), 
which,  extends  from  Kingsbridge  to  the  strait  between 
Long  Island  Sound  and  New  York  Bay,  known  as  the 
East  Iliver,  has  an  average  width  of  nine  hundred 
feet.  In  most  places  it  is  bordered  by  narrow  marshy 
flats,  with  liigh  hills  immediately  behind.  The  scenery  along  its 
whole  length,  to  the  villages  of  Harlem  and  Mott  Haven,  is 
picturesque.  The  roads  on  both  shores  afford  pleasant  di'ives, 
and  fine  country  seats  and  ornamental  pleasure-grounds,  add  to 
the  landscape  beauties  of  the  river.  A  line  of  small  steamboats,  connect- 
ing with  the  city,  traverse  its  waters,  the  liead  of  navigation  being  a  few 
yards  above  Post's  Century  House.  The  tourist  will  find  much  pleasure 
in  a  voyage  from  the  city  through  the  East  and  Harlem  Rivers. 

The  "  High  Bridge,"  or  aqueduct  over  which  the  waters  of  the  Croton 
flow  from  the  main  land  to  Manhattan  Island,  crosses  tho  Island  at  One 
Hundred  and  Seventy-Third  Street.  It  is  built  of  granite.  The  aqueduct 
is  fourteen  hundi-ed  and  fifty  feet  in  length,  and  rests  upon  arches  supported 
by  fourteen  piers  of  heavy  masonry.  Eight  of  these  arches  are  eighty 
feet  span,  and  six  of  them  fifty  feet.  The  height  of  the  bridge,  above 
tide  water,  is  one  hundred  and  fourteen  feet.  The  structure  originally 
cost  about  a  million  of  dollars.  Pleasant  roads  on  both  sides  of  the 
Harlem  lead  to  the  High  Bridge,  where  full  entertainment  for  man  and 
horse  maybe  had.  The  "High  Bridge"  is  a  place  of  great  resort  in 
pleasant  weather  for  those  who  love  the  road  and  rural  scenery. 

Abroad,  macadamized  avenue,  called  the  "Kingsbridge  Road,"  leads 
from  the  upper  end  of  York  Island  to  ilanhattanville,  where  it  connects 
vrith  and  is  continued  by  the  "  Bloomingdale  Road,"  in  the  direction  of 
the   city.     The  drive    over  tliis  road  is  very   agreeable.     The   winding 


372 


THE   HUDSON. 


avenue  passes  through  a  narrow  valley,  part  of  the  way  hetween  rugged, 
hills,  only  partially  divested  of  the  forest,  and  ascends  to  the  south-eastern 
slope  of  Mount  Washington  (the  highest  land  on  tlic  island),  on  which 
stands  the  village  of  Carmansvillc.  At  the  upper  end  of  this  village,  on 
the  high  rooky  bank  of  the  Harlem  River,  is  a  fine  old  mansion,  known 


THE  HIGH  BEIDGE.* 


as  the  "Morris  House,"  the  residence,  until  her  death  in  1865,  of  the 
widow  of  Aaron  Burr,  vice-president  of  the  United  States,  but  better 
known  as  Madame  Jumel,  the  name  of  her  first  husband.    The  mansion  is 


•  This  view  is  from  llie  gi'Oimcls  in  front  of  the  dwelling  of  Richard  Carman,  Esq.,  former  proprietor 
of  all  the  land  whereon  the  village  of  Carmansville  stands.  He  is  still  owner  of  a  verj'  largo  estate  in 
that  vicinity. 


THE   HUDSON, 


373 


at  One  Hundred  and  Sixty-ninth  Street.  It  is  surrounded  by  highly 
ornamented  grounds,  and  its  situation  is  one  of  the  most  desirahlo  on  the 
island.  It  commands  a  fine  view  of  the  Harlem  River  at  the  High 
Bridge,  to  the  village  of  Harlem  and  beyond ;  *  also  of  Long  Island  Sound, 
the  villages  of  Astoria  and  Flushing,  and  the  green  fields  of  Long  Island. 
Nearer  are  seen  Harlem  Plains,  and  the  fine  new  bridge  at  Macomb's  Dam. 
This  house  was  built  before  the  old  war  for  independence,  by  Roger 
Morris,  a  fellow- soldier  with  Washington  on  the  field  of  Monongohela, 


THE   HARLEM  EIVEH,  FBOM  THE  MOEEIS  HOUSE. 

where  Braddock  fell,  in.  the  summer  of  175.3.  Morris  was  also  "Washing- 
ton's rival  in  a  suit  for  the  heart  and  hand  of  Mary,  the  heir  of  the  lord 
of  Philipse's  Manor.  The  biographer  says  that  in  February,  1756, 
Colonel  "Washington  went  to  Boston  to  confer  with  Governor  Shirley  about 
military  affairs  in  Virginia.     He  stopped  in  New  York  on  his  return,  and 


*  Harlem,  situated  on  tlie  Hailem  Eiver,  between  the  EigUtli  Avenue  and  East  Eiver,  was  an  early 
settlement  on  the  island  of  Manlutttan,  by  the  Dutch.  It  was  a  flourishing  village,  chiefly  bordering 
the  Third  Avenue,  but  is  now  a  part  of  the  great  metropolis. 


374 


THE    HUDSON. 


was  then  the  guest  of  Beverly  Eobinson.  Mrs.  llobinson's  sister,  Mary 
Philipse,  was  also  a  guest  there,  in  the  summer-time.  Her  bright  eyes, 
blooming  checks,  great  vivacity,  perfection  of  person,  aristocratic 
connexions,  and  prospective  wealth,  captivated,  the  young  Virginia 
soldier.  He  lingered  in  her  presence  as  long  as  duty  would  permit,  and 
would  gladly  have  carried  her  with  him  to  Yirginia  as  his  bride  ;  but  his 
extreme  diffidence  kept  the  momentous  question  unspoken,  and  Eoger 
Morris,  his  I'ellow  aide-de-camp  in  Braddock's  military  family,  bore  off  the 


t^liU,^--^  '^ 


THE  MORHIS  MANSrON. 


prize.  Morris,  like  his  brother-in-law,  Beverly  Eobinson,  adhered  to  the 
crown  after  the  Amei'ican  colonies  declared  themselves  independent 
in  177G.  "\Mien,  in  the  autumn  of  that  year,  the  American  army  under 
Washington  encamped  upon  Harlem  Heights,  and  occupied  Tort  Washing- 
ton near,  Morris  fled  for  safety  to  Eobinson's  house  in  the  Highlands,  and 
Washington  occupied  his  elegant  mansion  as  his  head-quarters  for  awhile. 
The  house  is  preserved  in  its  original  form  and  materials,  excepting  where 
external  repairs  have  been  necessary. 


THE   HUDSON. 


375 


At  tlie  lower  extremity  of  Carmansvillc,  and  about  a  mile  above 
Manhattanvillc,  is  a  most  beautiful  domain,  as  yet  almost  untouched  by 
the  hand  of  change.  It  is  about  eight  miles  from  the  heart  of  the  city, 
completely  embowered,  and  presenting  a  pleasing  picture  at  every  point 
of  view.  This  was  the  home  of  General  Alexander  Hamilton,  one  of  the 
founders  of  the  Eepublic,  and  is  one  of  the  few  "  undesecrated  "  dwelling- 


places  of  the  men  of  the  last  century,  to  be  found  on  York  Island.  Near 
the  centre  of  the  ground  stands  the  house  Hamilton  built  for  his  home, 
and  which  he  named  "The  Grange,"  from  the  residence  of  his  grand- 
father, in  Ayrshire,  Scotland.  Then  it  was  completely  in  the  country — 
now  it  is  surrounded  by  the  suburban  residences  of  the  great  city.     It  is 


[t7HI7SESIT' 


^f/^OE"^ 


376 


THE   HUDSON. 


situated  about  half-way  between  the  Hudson  and  Harlem  Rivers,  and  is 
reached  from  the  Kingsbridge  road  by  a  gravelled  and  shaded  walk.  Near 
the  house  is  a  group  of  thirteen  trees,  planted  by  Hamilton  himself,  the 
year  before  ho  was  killed  in  a  duel  by  Aaron  Burr,  and  named, 
respectively,  after  the  original  thirteen  States  of  the  Union.  All  of  them 
are  straight,  vigorous  trees,  but  one,  and  that,  tradition  says,  he  chanced 
to  name  South  Carolina.  It  is  crooked  in  trunk  and  branches,  and 
materially  disfigures  the  group.  It  well  typifies  the  state  of  South 
Carolina  in  its  past  history  as  represented  by  its  ruling  class,  which 
was  composed,  to  a  great  extent,  of  professional  politicians,  who  were 
arrogant,  narrow,  opposed  to  simple  republican  institutions,  and  longing 
for  an  alteration  in  the  fundamental  principles  of  their  government  so  as  to 
have  political  power  centred  in  few  great  laud  and  slave  holders.  This 
class  was  always  crooked,  always  discontented  and  turbulent,  and  finally, 
in  the  year  1860,  disgraced  their  State  and  made  its  name  a  by-word  for 
all  time,  by  an  attempt  to  overthrow  the  Eepublic,  and  establish  upon  its 
ruins  the  despotism  of  an  irresponsible  oligarchy,  whose  basis  should  be 
HUMAN  SLAVERY !  Tlicy  kiudlcd  a  civil  war  which  cost  the  nation  the 
lives  of  almost  half  a  million  of  men,  and  nearly  three  thousand  millions 
of  dollars. 

The  "Grange"  is  upon  an  elevation  of  nearly  200  feet  above  the 
rivers,  and  commands,  through  ■\-istas,  delightful  views  of  Harlem  River  and 
Plains,  the  East  River  and  Long  Island,  and  the  fertile  fields  of  Lower 
"Westchester.  It  is  just  within  the  outer  lines  of  the  entrenchments 
thrown  up  by  the  Americans  in  1776,  and  is  in  the  midst  of  the  theatre  of 
the  stirring  events  of  that  year. 

Wc  have  now  fairly  entered  upon  Manhattan  Island,  in  our  journeyings 
from  the  "Wilderness  to  the  Sea,  and  are  rapidly  approaching  the 
commercial  metropolis  of  the  country,  seated  upon  its  southern  portion, 
whore  the  waters  of  the  Hudson,  the  East,  and  the  Passaic  Rivers 
commingle  in  the  magnificent  harbour  of  New  York. 

This  island — purchased  by  the  Dutch  of  the  painted  savages,  only  two 
centuries  and  a  half  ago,  for  the  paltry  sum  of  twenty-four  dollars,  paid 
in  trafiic  at  a  hundred  per  cent,  profit— contains  tenfold  more  wealth, 
in  proportion  to  its  size,  than  any  other  on  the  face  of  the  globe.     It  is 


THE   HUDSON.  377 


thirteen  and  a-half  miles  long,  and  two  and  a-half  miles  wide  at  its 
greatest  breadtli.  It  was  originally  very  rougli  and  rocky,  abounding  in 
swamps  and  conical  hills,  alternating  with  fertile  spots. 

Over  the  upper  part  of  the  island  are  many  pleasant  roads  not  yet 
straightened  into  rectangular  streets,  and  these  afford  fine  recreative  drives 
for  the  citizens,  and  stirring  scenes  when  the  lovers  of  fast  horses,  who 
abound  in  the  city,  are  abroad.  The  latter  are  seen  in  great  numbers  in 
these  thoroughfares  every  pleasant  afternoon,  when  "Young  America" 
takes  an  airing. 

Before  making  excursions  over  these  ways,  and  observing  their  sur- 
roundings, let  us  turn  aside  from  the  Kingsbridge  Eoad,  in  the  direction 
of  the  Hudson,  and,  following  a  winding  avenue,  note  some  of  the  private 
rural  residences  that  cover  tbe  crown  and  slopes  of  old  Mount  "Washington, 
now  called  Washington  Heights.  The  villas  are  remarkable  for  the  taste 
displayed  in  their  architecture,  their  commanding  locations,  and  the  beauty 
of  the  surrounding  grounds  derived  from  the  mingled  labour  of  art  and 
nature.  As  we  approach  the  river  the  hills  become  steeper,  the  road 
more  sinuous,  the  grounds  more  wooded,  and  the  general  scenery  on  land 
and  water  more  picturesriue.  One  of  the  most  charming  of  these 
landscapes,  looking  in  any  direction,  may  be  found  upon  the  road  just 
above  the  Washington  Heights  railway  station,  near  the  delightful 
residence  of  Thomas  Ingraham,  Esq.  It  our  little  sketch  we  are  looking 
up  the  road,  and  the  slopes  of  the  beautiful  lawn  in  front  of  his  house. 
Turning  hulf  round,  we  have  glimpses  of  the  Hudson,  and  quite 
extended  views  of  the  bold  scenery  about  Fort  Lee,  on  the  opposite 
shore. 

Following  this  road  a  few  rods  farther  down  the  heights,  we  reach  the 
station-house  of  the  Hudson  Eiver  Eailway,  which  stands  at  the  southern 
entrance  to  a  deep  rock  excavation  through  a  point  of  Mount  Washington, 
known  for  a  hundred  years  or  more  as  Jeftrey's  Hook.  This  point  has  an 
interesting  revolutionary  history  in  connection  with  Mount  Washington. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  war,  the  great  value,  in  a  strategic  point  of  view, 
of  Manhattan  Island,  and  of  the  river  itself — in  its  entire  length  to  Fort 
Edward — as  a  dividing  line  between  New  England  and  the  remainder  of 
the   colonies,    was   fully  appreciated   by  the   contending   parties.     The 

3  c 


378 


THE    HUDSON. 


Americans  adopted  measures  early  to  secure  these,  by  erecting  fortifications. 
!Mount  Washington  (so  named  at  that  time)  was  the  most  elevated  land 
upon  the  island,  and  formidable  military  -worlis  of  earth  and  stone  were 


VIEW  ON  WASHINGTON  HEIGHTS. 


soon  erected  upon  its  crown  and  upon  the  heights  in  the  vicinity  from 
Manhattanville  to  Kingsbridge.  The  principal  work  was  Fort  "Washington. 
The  citadel  was  on  the  crown  of  Mount  Washington,  overlooking  the 


„ 


THE   HUDSON, 


379 


country  in  every  direction,  and  comprising  within  the  scope  of  vision  the 
Hudson  from  the  Highlands  to  the  harbour  of  ISTew  York.  The  citadel, 
with  the  outworks,  covered  several  acres  between  One  Hundred  and 
Eighty-first  and  One  Hundred  and  Eighty-sixth  Streets. 

On  the  point  of  the  chief  promontory  of  Mount  "Washington  jutting 
into    the    Hudson,    known   as  Jeflfery's   Hook,    a   strong   redoubt   was 


JEFFEET'a  HOOK. 


constructed,  as  a  cover  to  ehci-aux-de-frise  and  other  obstructions  placed  in 
the  river  between  that  point  and  Fort  Lee,  to  prevent  the  British  ships 
going  up  the  Hudson.  The  remains  of  this  redoubt,  in  the  form  of  grassy 
mounds  covered  with  small  cedars,  are  prominent  upon  the  point,  as  seen 
in  the  engraving  above.  The  ruins  of  Fort  Washington,  in  similar  form, 
were  also  very  conspicuous  until  within  a  few  years,  and  a  flag  staff 


380 


THE   HUDSON. 


marked  the  place  of  the  citadel.  But  the  ruthless  hand  of  pride,  forgetful 
of  the  past,  and  of  all  patriotic  allegiance  to  the  most  cherished  traditions 
of  American  citizens,  has  levelled  the  mounds,  and  removed  the  flag-staff ; 
and  that  spot,  consecrated  to  the  memory  of  valorous  deeds  and  courageous 
suffering,  must  now  bo  sought  for  in  the  kitchen-garden  or  ornamental 
grounds  of  some  ■wealthy  citizen,  whose  choice  celery  or  bed  of  verbenas 
has  greater  charms  than  the  green  sward  of  a  hillock  beneath  which 
reposes  the  dust  of  a  soldier  of  the  old  war  for  independence ! 


ASYLUM  FOE  THE  BEAT  AHD  DDMB, 


"Soldiers  buried  here?"  inquires  the  startled  resident.  Yes;  your 
villa,  your  garden,  your  beautiful  lawn,  are  all  spread  out  over  the  dust 
of  soldiers,  for  all  over  these  heights  the  blood  of  Americans,  English- 
men, and  Germans  flowed  freely  in  the  autumn  of  1776,  when  the  fort 
was  taken  by  the  British  after  one  of  the  hardest  struggles  of  the  war. 
More  than  two  thousand  Americans  were  captured,  and  soon  filled  the 
loathsome  prisons  and  prison-ships  of  New  York. 

Near  the  river-bank,  on  the  south-western  slope  of  Mount  "Washington, 
is  the  New  York  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  one  of  several 


THE   HUDSON.  381 


retreats  for  the  unfortunate,  situated  upon  the  Hudson  shore  of  Manhattan 
Island.  It  is  one  of  the  oldest  institutions  of  the  kind  in  the  United 
States,  the  act  of  the  Legislature  of  New  York  incorporating  it  heing  dated 
on  the  day  (April  15,  1817)  when  the  Asylum  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb 
at  Hartford,  Connecticut,  was  opened.  The  illustrious  De  Witt  Clinton 
was  the  first  president  of  the  association.  Its  progress  was  slow  for 
several  years,  when,  in  1831,  Mr.  Harvey  P.  Peet  was  installed  executive 
head  of  the  asylum,  as  principal :  he  infused  life  into  the  institution 
immediately.  Its  affairs  were  administered  by  his  skilful  and  energetic 
hand  during  more  than  thirty  years,  and  his  services  were  marked  by  the 
most  gratifying  results.  In  1845,  the  title  of  President  was  conferred 
upon  Mr.  Peet,  and  three  or  four  years  later  he  received  the  honorary 
degree  of  Doctor  of  Laws.  He  was  at  the  head  of  instruction  and  of  the 
family  in  the  institution.  Under  his  guidance  many  of  both  sexes,  shut 
out  from  participation  in  the  intellectual  blessings  which  are  vouchsafed 
to  well-developed  humanity,  were  newly  created,  as  it  were,  and  made  to 
experience,  in  a  degree,  the  sensations  of  Adam,  as  described  by 
Milton : — 

"  straight  towards  heaven  my  wonderinp  eyes  I  turned, 
And  gazed  awhile  the  ample  sky,  till  raised 
By  quielc  instinetive  motion,  up  I  sprung. 
As  thitherward  endeavouring,  and  upright 
Stood  on  my  feet ;  about  me  round  I  saw 
Hill,  dale,  and  shady  woods,  and  sunny  plains, 
And  liquid  lapse  of  murmuring  streams  ;  by  these, 
Creatures  tliat  lived,  and  moved,  and  walked,  or  Hew  ; 
Birds  on  the  branches  warbling ;  all  things  smiled  ; 
with  fragrance  and  with  joj'  my  heart  o'erflowed. 
Myself  I  then  perused,  and  limb  by  limb 
Surveyed,  and  sometimes  went,  and  sometimes  ran. 
With  supple  joints,  as  lively  vigour  led ; 
But  who  I  was,  or  where,  or  from  what  cause, 
Knew  not ;  to  speak  Itried^  niid  forthwith  spoke  : 
My  tongue  obeyed,  and  readily  conld  name 
Wliate'er  I  saw." 


The  situation  of  the  Institution  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb  is  a  delightful 
one.  The  lot  comprises  thirty-seven  acres  of  land,  between  the  Kings- 
bridge  Eoad  and  the  river,  about  nine  miles  from  the  New  Tork  City 
Hall.     The  buildings,  five  in  number,  form  a  quadrangle  of  two  hundred 


382 


THE    HUDSON. 


and  forty  feet  front,  and  more  tlian  three  hundi-ed  feet  in  depth  ;  they 
are  upon  a  terrace  one  hundred  and  twenty-seven  feet  above  the  river, 
and  are  surrounded  by  fine  old  trees,  and  shrubbery.  The  buildings  are 
capable  of  accommodating  four  hundred  and  fifty  pupils,  with  their 
teachers  and  superintendents,  and  the  necessary  domestics. 

In  the  midst  of  a  delightful  grove  of  forest  trees,  a  short  distance  below 


AUDUBOS'S  EESIDEMCE. 


the  Asylum  for  the  Deaf  and  Dumb,  is  the  dwelling  of  the  late 
J.  J.  Audubon,  the  eminent  naturalist,  where  some  of  his  family  still 
reside.  Only  a  few  years  ago  it  was  as  secluded  as  any  rural  scene  fifty 
miles  from  the  city ;  now,  other  dwellings  are  in  the  grove,  streets  have 
been  cut  through  it,  the  suburban  village  of  Carmansville  has  covered  the 


THE   HUDSON.  383 


adjacent  eminence,  and  a  station  of  the  Hudson  Eiver  Eailway  is  almost 
in  front  of  the  dwelling. 

Audnbon  was  one  of  the  most  remarkable  men  of  his  age,  and  his  work 
on  the  "Birds  of  America"  fonns  one  of  the  noblest  monuments  ever 
made  in  commemoration  of  true  genius.  In  that  great  work,  pictures  of 
birds,  the  natural  size,  are  given  in  four  hundred  and  eighty-eight  plates. 
It  was  completed  in  1844,  and  at  once  commanded  the  highest  admiration 
of  scientific  men.  Baron  Cuvier  said  of  it, — "  It  is  the  most  gigantic  and 
most  magnificent  monument  that  has  ever  been  erected  to  Nature." 
Audubon  was  the  son  of  a  French  admiral,  who  settled  in  Louisiana,  and 
his  whole  life  was  devoted  to  his  favourite  pursuit.  The  story  of  that 
life  is  a  record  of  acts  of  highest  heroism,  and  presents  a  most  remarkable 
illustration  of  the  triumphs  of  perseverance. 

A  writer,  who  visited  Mr.  Audubon  not  long  before  his  death,  in  1851, 
has  left  the  following  pleasant  account  of  him  and  his  residence  near 
Mount  Washington  : — • 

"  My  walk  soon  brought  a  secluded  country  house  into  view, — a  house 
not  entirely  adapted  to  the  nature  of  the  scenery,  yet  simple  and  unpre- 
tending in  its  architecture,  and  beautifully  embowered  amid  elms  and 
oaks.  Several  graceful  fawns,  and  a  noble  elk,  were  stalking  in  the 
shade  of  the  trees,  apparently  unconscious  of  the  presence  of  a  few  dogs, 
and  not  caring  for  the  numerous  turkeys,  geese,  and  other  domestic 
animals  that  gobbled  and  screamed  around  them.  'Not  did  my  own 
approach  startle  the  wild,  beautiful  creatures  that  seemed  as  docile  as 
any  of  their  tame  companions. 

"'Is  the  master  at  home?'  I  asked  of  a  pretty  maid-servant  who 
answered  my  tap  at  the  door,  and  who,  after  informing  me  that  he  was, 
led  me  into  a  room  on  the  west  side  of  the  broad  hall.  It  was  not,  how- 
ever, a  parlour,  or  an  ordinary  reception  room  that  I  entered,  but 
evidently  a  room  for  work.  In  one  comer  stood  a  painter's  easel,  with  a 
half-finished  sketch  of  a  beaver  on  the  paper ;  on  the  other  lay  the  skin 
of  an  American  panther.  The  antlers  of  elks  hung  upon  the  walls, 
stuffed  birds  of  every  description  of  gay  plumage  ornamented  the  mantel- 
piece, and  exquisite  drawings  of  field-mice,  orioles,  and  woodpeckers, 
were  scattered  promiscuously  in  other  parts  of  the  room,  across  one  end 


384  THE   HUDSON. 


of  wliicli  a  long  rude  table  was  stretclied,  to  hold  artist's  materials,  scraps 
of  drawing-paper,  and  immense  folio  volumes,  filled  with  delicious 
paintings  of  birds  taken  in  their  native  haunts. 

"  '  This,'  said  I  to  myself,  '  is  the  studio  of  the  naturalist,'  but  hardly 
had  the  thought  escaped  mo  when  the  master  himself  made  his  appear- 
ance. He  was  a  tall,  thin  man,  with  a  high,  arched,  and  serene  forehead, 
and  a  bright,  penetrating,  grey  eye  ;  his  white  locks  fell  in  clusters  upon 
his  shoulders,  but  they  were  the  only  signs  of  age,  for  his  form  was 
erect,  and  his  step  as  light  as  that  of  a  deer.  The  expression  of  his  face 
was  sharp,  but  noble  and  commanding,  and  there  was  something  in  it, 
partly  derived  from  the  aquiline  nose,  and  partly  from  the  shutting  of 
the  mouth,  which  made  you  think  of  the  imperial  eagle. 

"His  greeting,  as  he  entered,  was  at  once  frank  and  cordial,  and 
showed  you  the  sincere,  true  man.  '  How  kind  it  is,'  he  said,  with  a 
slight  French  accent,  and  in  a  pensive  tone,  '  to  come  to  see  me,  and  how 
wise,  too,  to  leave  that  crazy  city  ! '  He  then  shook  me  warmly  by  the 
hand.  '  Do  you  know,'  he  continued,  '  how  I  wonder  that  men  can 
consent  to  swelter  and  fret  their  lives  away  amid  those  hot  bricks  and 
pestilent  vapours,  when  the  woods  and  fields  are  all  so  near  ?  It  would 
kill  mc  soon  to  be  confined  in  such  a  prison-house,  and  when  I  am  forced 
to  make  an  occasional  visit  there,  it  fills  mc  with  loathing  and  sadness. 
Ah  !  how  often,  when  I  have  been  abroad  on  the  mountains,  has  my  heart 
risen  in  grateful  praise  to  God  that  it  was  not  my  destiny  to  waste  and 
pino  among  those  noisome  congregations  of  the  city  !'  "* 

Audubon  died  at  the  beginning  of  1851,  at  the  age  of  seventy-one 
years.  His  body  was  laid  in  a  modest  tomb  in  the  beautiful  Trinity 
Cemetery,  near  his  dwelling.  This  burial-place,  deeply  shaded  by 
original  forest  trees  and  varieties  that  have  been  planted,  afi'ords  a  most 
delightful  retreat  on  a  warm  summer's  day.  It  lies  upon  the  slopes  of 
the  river  bank.  Foot-paths  and  carriage-roads  wind  through  it  in  all 
directions,  and  pleasant  glimpses  of  the  Hudson  may  be  caught  through 
vistas  at  many  points.     In  the  south-western  extremity  of  the  grounds. 


THE   HUDSON. 


385 


upon  a  plain  granite  doorway  to  a  vault,  may  bo  seen,  in  raised  letters, 
the  name  of  Audubon. 

The  drive  from  Trinity  Cemetery  to  Manhattanville  is  a  delightful  one. 
The  road  is  hard  and  smooth  at  all  seasons  of  the  year,  and  is  shaded  in 
summer  by  many  ancient  trees  that  graced  the  forest.  From  it  frequent 
pleasant  views  of  the   river  may  be  obtained.     There   are   some   fine 


VIEW  IN  TEIKITY  CEMETERV. 


residences  on  both  sides  of  the  way,  and  evidences  of  the  sure  but  stealthy 
approach  of  the  great  city  are  perceptible. 

Manhattanville,  situated  in  the  chief  of  the  four  valleys  that  cleave  the 
island  from  the  Hudson  to  the  East  Eiver,  now  a  pleasant  suburban 
village,  is  destined  to  be  soon  swallowed  by  the  approaching  and  rapacious 
town.     Its  site  on  the  Hudson  was  originally  called  Harlem  Cove.     It 

3   D 


386 


THE   HUDSON. 


was  considered  a  place  of  strategic  importance  in  the  -war  for  independence 
and  the  war  of  1812,  and  at  both  periods  fortifications  were  erected  there 
to  command  the  pass  from  the  Hudson  to  Harlem  Plains,  to  whose  verge 


'^y^//y. 


MANUATTANVILLE  FROM   CLAREMONT. 


the  little  village  extends.  Upon  the  heights  near,  the  Roman  Catholics 
have  two  flourishing  literary  institutions,  namely,  the  Convent  of  the 
Sacred  Heart,  for  girls,  and  the  Academy  of  the  Holy  Infant,  for  boys. 


THE   HUDSON. 


387 


Upon  the  high  promontory  overlooking  the  Hudson,  on  the  south  side 
of  Manhattanville,  is  Jones's  Clareraont  Hotel,  a  fashionable  place  of 
resort  for  the  pleasure-seekers  who  frequent  the  Bloomingdale  and  Kings- 
bridge  roads  on  pleasant  afternoons.  At  such  times  it  is  often  thronged 
with  visitors,  and  presents  a  lively  appearance.  The  main,  or  older 
portion  of  the  building,  was  erected,'  I  believe,  by  the  elder  Dr.  Post, 


CLAEEMONT. 


early  in  the  present  century,  as  a  summer  residence,  and  named  by  him 
Claremont.  It  still  belongs  to  the  Post  famUy.  It  was  an  elegant 
country  mansion,  upon  a  most  desirable  spot,  overlooking  many  leagues 
of  the  Hudson.  There,  more  than  fifty  years  ago,  lived  Viscount 
Courtenay,  afterwards  Earl  of  Devon.  He  left  England,  it  was  reported, 
because  of  political  troubles.     When  the  war   of   1812  broke  out,   he 


388 


THE    HUDSON. 


returned  thither,  leaving  his  furniture  and  plate,  which  were  sold  at 
auction.  The  latter  is  preserved  with  care  by  the  family  of  the 
purchaser.  Courtenay  was  a  great  "lion"  in  'New  York,  for  he  was  a 
handsome  bachelor,  with  title,  fortune,  and  reputation — a  combination 
of  excellences  calculated  to  captivate  the  heart-desires  of  the  opposite  sex. 

Claremont  was  the  residence,  for  'tiwhile,  of  Joseph  Buonaparte,  ex-king 
of  Spain,  when  ho  first  took  refuge  in  the  United  States,  after  the  battle 
of  Waterloo  and  the  downfall  of  the  Napoleon  dynasty.  Here,  too, 
Francis  James  Jackson,  the  successor  of  Mr.  Erskino,  the  British  minister 
at  Washington  at  the  opening  of  the  war  of  1812,  resided  a  short  time. 
He  was  familiarly  known  as  "  Copenhagen  Jackson,"  because  of  his  then 
recent  participation  in  measures  for  the  seizure  of  the  Danish  fleet  by  the 
British  at  Copenhagen.  He  was  politically  and  socially  unpopular,  and 
presented  a  strong  contrast  to  the  polished  Courtenay. 

Manhattanville  is  the  northern  termination  of  the  celebrated  Blooming- 
dale  Road,  which  crosses  the  island  diagonally  from  Union  Square  at 
Sixteenth  Street,  to  the  high  bank  of  the  Hudson  at  One  Hundred  and 
Fifteenth  Street.  It  is  a  continuation  of  Broadway  (the  chief  retail 
business  street  of  the  city),  from  Union  Square  to  Harsenville,  at  Sixty- 
Eighth  Street.  In  that  section  it  is  called  Broadway,  and  is  compactly 
built  upon.  Beyond  Seventieth  Street  it  is  still  called  Bloomingdalc 
Road — a  hard,  smooth,  macadamised  highway,  broad,  devious,  and 
undulating,  shaded  the  greater  portion  of  its  length,  made  attractive  by 
many  elegant  residences  and  ornamental  grounds,  and  thronged  every  fine 
day  with  fast  horses  and  light  vehicles,  bearing  the  young  and  the  gay  of 
both  sexes.  The  stranger  in  New  York  will  have  the  pleasure  of  his 
visit  greatly  enhanced  by  a  drive  over  this  road  toward  the  close  of  a 
pleasant  day.  Its  nearest  approach  to  the  river  is  at  One  Hundred  and 
Fifteenth  Street,  at  which  point  our  little  sketch  was  taken. 

Among  the  places  of  note  on  the  Bloomingdalc  Road  is  the  New  York 
Asylum  for  the  Insane,  Elm  Park,  and  the  New  York  Orphan  Asylum. 
The  former  is  situated  on  the  east  side  of  the  road  where  it  approaches 
nearest  the  Hudson,  the  grounds,  containing  forty  acres,  occupying  the 
entire  square  between  Tenth  and  Eleventh  Avenues,  and  One  Hundred 
and  Fifteenth  and  One  Hundred  and  Twentieth  Streets.     The  institution 


THE   HUDSON. 


389 


was  opened  in  the  year  1821,  for  the  reception  of  patients.  It  may  he 
considered  a  development  of  the  Lunatic  Asylum  founded  in  1810.  Its 
establishment  upon  more  rational  principles  is  due  to  the  benevolent 
Thomas  Eddy,  a  Quaker,  who  proposed  to  the  governors  of  the  old 
institution  a  course  of  moral  treatment  more  thorough  and  extensive  than 
had  yet  been  tried. 

The  place  selected  for  the  asylum,  near  the  village  of  Bloomingdale,  is 


VIEW  ON  BLOOMINGDALE  HOAD. 


unequaHed.  The  ground  is  elevated  and  dry,  and  affords  extensive  and 
delightful  views  of  the  Hudson  and  the  adjacent  city  and  country.  The 
buildings  are  spacious,  the  grounds  beautifully  laid  out,  and  ornamented 
with  shrubbery  and  flowers,  and  eveiy  arrangement  is  made  with  a  view 
to  soothe  and  heal  the  distempers  of  the  mind.     The  patients  are  allowed 


390 


THE   HUDSON. 


to  busy  themselves  witli  work  or  choseu  amusements,  to  walk  in  the 
garden  or  pleasure-grounds,  and  to  ride  out  on  pleasant  days,  proper 
discrimination  being  always  observed. 

A  short  distance  below  the  Asylum  for  the  Insane,  on  the  east  side  of 
tlie  Bloomingdale  Eoad,  is  the  fine  old  country  seat  of  the  Apthorpc 
family,  called  Elm  Park.  It  is  now  given  to  the  uses  of  mere  devotees 
of  pleasure.     Here  the  Germans  of  the  city  congregate  in  great  numbers 


fHt 


ASVLU.M   FOE  THE  IXSAXE. 


during  hours  of  leisure,  to  drink  beer,  tell  stories,  smoke,  sing,  and  enjoy 
themselves  in  their  peculiar  way  with  a  zeal  that  seems  to  be  inspired  by 
Moore's  idea  that — 


"  Pleasure's  llie  only  iioWe  enJ, 
To  which  all  human  powers  should  tend." 


Elm  Park  was  the  head-quarters  of  Sir  William  Howe,  at  the  time  of  the 
battle  on  Harlem  Plains,  in  the  autumn  of  1776.  Washington  had 
occupied  it  only  the  day  before,   and  liad  there  waited  anxiously  and 


THE    HUDSON. 


391 


impatiently  for  tlie  arrival  of  the  fugitive  Americans  under  General 
Putnam,  who  narrowly  escaped  capture  when  the  British  took  possession 
of  the  city.  The  Bloomingdale  Eoad,  along  which  they  moved,  then 
passed  through  almost  continuous  woods  in  this  vicinity.  Washington 
himself  had  a  very  narrow  escape  here,  for  he  left  the  house  only  a  few 
minutes  before  the  advanced  British  column  took  possession  of  it. 

Elm  Park,  when  the  accompanying  sketch  was  made  (Juiie,  1861), 


KLM   I'AUK    IX    ISCl 


was  a  sort  of  camp  of  instruction  for  volunteers  for  the  army  of  the 
Republic,  then  engaged  in  crushing  the  great  rebellion,  in  favour  of 
human  slavery  and  political  and  social  despotism.  When  I  visited  it, 
companies  were  actively  drilling,  and  the  sounds  of  the  fife  and  drum 
were  mingled  with  the  voices  of  mirth  and  conviviality.     It  was  an  hour 


392 


THE   HUDSON, 


Qfter  a  tempest  had  passed  by  which  had  prostrated  one  or  two  of  the 
old  majestic  trees  which  shade  the  ground  and  the  broad  entrance  lane. 
These  trees,  composed  chiefly  of  elms  and  locusts,  attest  the  antiquity  of 
the  place,  and  constitute  the  lingering  dignity  of  a  mansion  where  wealth 
and  social  refinement  once  dispensed  the  most  generous  hospitality. 
Strong  are  the  contrasts  in  its  earlier  and  later  history. 


CHAPTER    XXI. 


\  ETWEEN  the  Bloomingdale  Road  and  the  Hudson,  and 
',^j  Seventy-third  and  Seventy-fourth  Streets,  is  the  New 
'^  York  Orphan  Asylum,  one  of  the  noblest  charities  in 
the  land.  It  is  designed  for  the  care  and  culture  of 
little  children  without  parents  or  other  protectors. 
Here  a  home  and  refuge  are  found  for  little  ones  who  have 
been  cast  upon  the  cold  charities  of  the  world.  From  one 
hundred  and  fifty  to  two  hundred  of  these  children  of  misfor- 
tune are  there  continually,  with  their  physical,  moral,  intel- 
lectual, and  spiritual  wants  supplied.  Their  home  is  a  beautiful  one. 
The  building  is  of  stone,  and  the  grounds  around  it,  sloping  to  the  river, 
comprise  about  fifteen  acres.  This  institution  is  the  child  of  the  "  Society 
for  the  Relief  of  Poor  "Widows  with  Small  Children,"  founded  in  1806  by 
several  benevolent  ladies,  among  whom  were  the  sainted  Isabella  Graham, 
Mrs.  Hamilton,  wife  of  the  eminent  General  Alexander  Hamilton,  and 
Mrs.  Joanna  Bethune,  daughter  of  Mrs.  Graham.  It  is  supported  by 
private  bequests  and  annual  subscriptions. 

There  is  a  similar  establishment,  called  the  Leake  and  Watts  Orphan 
House,  situated  above  the  New  York  Asylum,  on  One  Hundred  and 
Eleventh  and  One  Hundred  and  Twelfth  Streets,  between  the  Ninth  and 
Tenth  Avenues.  It  is  surrounded  by  twenty-sis  acres  of  land,  owned  by 
the  institution.  The  building,  which  was  first  opened  for  the  reception 
of  orphans  in  18-12,  is  capable  of  accommodating  about  two  hundred  and 
fifty  children.  It  was  founded  by  John  George  Leake,  who  bequeathed 
a  large  sum  for  the  purpose.  His  executor,  John  "Watts,  also  made  a 
liberal  donation  for  the  same  object,  and  in  honour  of  these  benefactors 
the  institution  was  named. 

These  comprise  the  chief  public  establishments  for  the  unfortunate  in 
the  city  of  New  York,  near  the  Hudson  river.     There  are  many  others 

3    F. 


394 


THE    HUDSON. 


in  the  metropolis,  but  they  do  not  properly  claim  a  place  in  these 
sketches. 

Let  us  hero  turn  towards  the  interior  of  the  island,  drive  to  the  rcrgc 
of  Harlem  Plains,  and  tlien  make  a  brief  tour  through  the  finished  portions 
of  the  Central  Park.  Our  road  will  bo  a  little  unpleasant  a  part  of  the 
way,  for  this  portion  of  the  island  is  yet  in  a  state  of  transition  from 
original  roughness  to  the  symmetry  produced  by  art  and  labour. 

Here,  on  the  southern  verge  of  the  Plains,  we  will  leave  our  waggon, 
and  climb  to  the  summit  of  the  rocky  bluff,  by  a  winding  path  up  a  steep 


ORPHAN  ASYLUM. 


hill  covered  with  bushes,  and  take  our  stand  by  the  side  of  an  old  square 
tower  of  brick,  built  for  a  redoubt  during  the  war  of  1812,  and  now  used 
as  a  powder-house.  The  view  northward,  over  Harlem  Plains,  is  de- 
lightful. From  the  road  at  our  feet  stretch  away  numerous  "truck" 
gardens,  from  which  the  city  draws  vegetable  supplies.  On  the  left  is 
seen  Manhattanville  and  a  glimpse  of  the  Palisades  beyond  the  Hudson. 
In  the  centre,  upon  the  highest  visible  point,  is  the  Convent  of  the  Sacred 
Heart ;  and  towards  the  right  is  the  Croton  Aqueduct,  or  High  Eridge, 
over  the  Harlem  river.     The  trees  on  the  extreme  right  mark  the  line  of 


THE   HUDSON. 


395 


the  race-course,  a  mile  in  length,  beginning  at  Luffs,  the  great  resort  for 
sportsmen.  On  this  course,  the  trotting  abilities  of  fast  horses  are  tried 
by  matches  every  fine  day. 

In  our  little  view  of  the  Plains  and  the  high  ground  beyond,  is  included 
the  theatre  of  stirring  and  very  important  events  of  the  revolution,  in  the 
autumn  of  1776.  Here  was  fought  the  battle  of  Harlem  Plains,  that 
saved  the  American  army  on  Harlem  Heights ;  and  yonder,  in  the  dis- 
tance, was  the  entrenched  camp  of  the  Americans  between  Manhattanville 


HARLEM  PLAINS. 


and  Mount  Washington,  within  which  occurred  most  of  the  sanguinary 
scenes  in  the  capture  of  Port  Washington  by  the  British  and  Hessians. 

Our  rocky  observatory,  more  than  a  hundred  feet  above  tide-water, 
overlooking  Harlem  Plains,  is  included  in  the  Central  Park.  Let  us 
descend  from  it,  ride  along  the  verge  of  the  Plain,  and  go  up  east  of 
McGowan's  Pass  at  about  One  Hundred  and  Ninth  Street,  where  the 
remains  of  Forts  Pish  and  Clinton  are  yet  very  prominent.  These  were 
built  on  the  site  of  the  fortifications  of  the  revolution,  during  the  war  of 


396 


THE    HUDSON. 


1812.  Here  vtc  enter  among  the  hundreds  of  men  employed  in  fashioning 
the  Central  I'ark.  AVhat  a  chaos  is  presented!  Men,  teams,  harrows, 
blasting,  trenching,  tunnelling,  bridging,  and  every  variety  of  labour 
needful  in  the  transforming  process.  We  pick  our  way  over  an  almost 
impassable  road  among  boulders  and  blasted  rocks,  to  the  great  artificial 
basin  of  one  hundred  acres,  now  nearly  completed,  which  is  to  be  called 


A'lEW  IN  CENTRAL  PARK.' 


the  Lake  of  Man-a-hat-ta.  It  will  really  be  only  an  immense  tank  of 
Croton  water,  for  the  use  of  the  city.  "We  soon  reach  the  finished  portions 
of  the  park,  and  arc  delighted  with  the  promises  of  future  grandeur  and 
beauty. 


TIii3  is  a  view  of  ii  rortion  of  the  SliiUiiig-Pond  from  a  lilgli  point  of  the  Raiuble. 


THE   HUDSON.  397 


It  is  impossible,  in  the  brief  space  allotted  to  these  sketches,  to  give 
even  a  faint  appreciative  idea  of  the  ultimate  appearance  of  this  park, 
according  to  the  designs  of  Messrs.  Olmstead  and  Vaux.  "We  may  only 
convey  a  few  hints.  The  park  was  suggested  by  the  late  A.  J.  Downing, 
in  1851,  when  Kingsland,  mayor  of  the  city,  gave  it  his  official  recom- 
mendation. Within  a  hundred  days  the  Legislature  of  the  State  of  New 
York  granted  the  city  permission  to  lay  out  a  park ;  and  in  February, 
1856,  733  acres  of  land,  in  the  centre  of  the  island,  was  in  possession  of 
the  civic  authorities  for  the  purpose.  Other  purchases  for  the  same  end 
were  made,  and,  finally,  the  area  of  the  park  was  extended  in  the  direc- 
tion of  Harlem  Plains,  so  as  to  include  843  acres.  It  is  more  than  two 
and  a-half  miles  long,  and  half  a  mile  wide,  between  the  Fifth  and  Eighth 
Avenues,  and  Fifty- ninth  and  One  Hundred  and  Tenth  Streets.  A  great 
portion  of  this  space  was  little  better  than  rocky  hills  and  marshy  hollows, 
much  of  it  covered  with  tangled  shrubs  and  vines.  The  rocks  are  chiefly 
upheavals  of  gneiss,  and  the  soil  is  composed  mostly  of  alluvial  deposits 
lllled  with  boulders.  Already  a  wonderful  change  lias  been  wrought. 
Many  acres  have  been  beautified,  and  the  visitor  now  has  a  clear  idea  of 
the  general  character  of  the  park,  when  completed. 

The  primary  purpose  of  the  park  is  to  provide  the  best  practicable  means 
of  healthful  recreation  for  the  inhabitants  of  the  city,  of  all  classes.  Its 
chief  feature  will  be  a  Mall,  or  broad  walk  of  gravel  and  grass,  208  feet 
wide,  and  a  fourth  of  a  mile  long,  planted  with  four  rows  of  the  magnifi- 
cent American  elm  trees,  with  seats  and  other  requisites  for  resting  and 
lounging.  This,  as  has  been  suggested,  will  be  New  York's  great  out-of- 
doors  Hall  of  Re-union.  There  will  be  a  carriage-way  more  than  nine 
miles  in  length,  a  bridle-path  or  equestuian  road  more  than  five  miles 
long,  and  walks  for  pedestrians  full  twenty-one  miles  in  length.  These 
will  never  cross  each  other.  There  will  also  be  traffic  roads,  crossing  the 
park  in  straight  lines  from  east  to  west,  which  will  pass  through  trenches 
and  tunnels,  and  be  seldom  seen  by  the  pleasure-seekers  in  the  park. 
The  whole  length  of  roads  and  walks  will  be  almost  forty  miles. 

The  Croton  water  tanks  already  there,  and  the  new  one  to  be  made, 
will  jointly  cover  150  acres.  There  are  several  other  smaller  bodies  of 
water,  in  their  natural  basins.     The  principal  of  these  is  a  beautiful. 


398 


THE    HUDSON. 


irregular  lake,  known  as  the  Skating-Pond.  Pleasure-boats  glide  over  it 
in  summer,  and  in  winter  it  is  thronged  with  skaters.*  One  portion  of 
the  Skating-Pond  is  devoted  exclusively  to  the  gentler  sex.  These,  of 
nearly  all  ages  and  conditions,  throng  the  ice  whenever  the  skating  is 
good. 

Open  spaces  are  to  be  left  for  military  parades,  and  large  plats  of  turf 
for  games,  such  as  ball  and  cricket,  will  be  laid  down — about  twenty 
acres  for  the  former,  and  ten  for  the  latter  ;  and  it  is  intended  to  have  a 
beautiful  meadow  in  the  centre  of  the  park. 

There  will  be  arches  of  cut  stone,  and  numerous  bridges  of  iron  and 
stone  (the  latter  handsomely  ornamented  and  fashioned  in  the  most  costly 
style),  spanning  the  traffic-roads,  ravines,  and  ponds.  One  of  the  most 
remarkable  of  these,  forming  a  central  architectural  feature,  is  the  Terrace 
Bridge,  at  the  north  end  of  the  Mall,  already  approaching  completion. 
This  bridge  covers  a  broad  arcade,  where,  in  alternate  niches,  will  be 
statues  and  fountains.  Below  will  be  a  platform,  170  feet  wide,  ex- 
tending to  the  border  of  the  Skating-Pond.  It  will  embrace  a  spacious 
basin,  with  a  fine  fountain  jet  in  its  centre.  This  structure  will  be 
composed  of  exquisitely  wrought  light  brown  freestone,  and  granite. 

Sucli  is  a  general  idea  of  the  park,  the  construction  of  which  was  begun 
at  the  beginning  of  1858;  it  is  expected  to  be  completed,  in  1864 — a 
period  of  only  about  six  years.  The  entire  cost  will  not  fall  much  shoi  t 
of  12,000,000  dollars.  As  many  as  four  thousand  men  and  several 
hundred  horses  have  been  at  work  upon  it  at  one  time.f 

From  the  Central  Park — where  beauty  and  symmetry  in  the  hands  of 
Nature  and  Art  already  performed  noble  Ecsthetic  service  for  the  citizens 
of  New  York — let  us  ride  to  "Jones's  Woods,"  on  the  eastern  borders  of 
the  island,  where,  until  recently,  the  silence  of  the  country  forest  might 
have  been  enjoyed  almost  within  sound  of  the  hum  of  the  busy  town. 


*  The  New  York  Spirit  of  the  Times,  refen-iiig  to  tliis  lake,  said:— "From  the  commencement  of 
skating  to  tlic  2-ith  day  of  February  (1861)  was  sixtj-'tliree  days;  there  was  skating  on  forty-five  days, 
and  no  skaliug  on  eighteen  da)'a.  Of  visitors  to  the  pond,  the  least  number  on  any  one  day  was  one 
hundred;  tlie  largest  number  on  one  day  (Cliristmas)  estimated  at  100,000;  aggregate  number  during 
the  season,  510,000;  avorjige  number  on  skating  days,  12,000." 

t  This  brief  description  was  written,  and  the  accompanying  sketches  were  made,  in  ISOl.  The 
great  work  of  fashioning  this  Park,  leaving  Nature,  in  the  growth  of  trees  and  shrubbery,  to  enrich  and 
beautify  it,  is  now  (1S6B)  nearly  completed. 


THE   HUDSON. 


399 


But  here,  as  everywhere  else,  on  the  upper  part  of  Manhattan  Island,  the 
early  footprints  in  the  march  of  improvement  are  seen.  As  we  leave  the 
heautiful  arrangement  of  the  park,  the  eye  immediately  encounters  scenes 
of  perfect  chaos,  where  animated  and  inanimated  nature  comhine  in 
making  pictures  upon  memory,  never  to  be  forgotten.  The  opening  and 
grading  of  new  streets  produce  many  rugged  bluffs  of  earth  and  rock ; 
and  upon  these,  whole  villages  of  squatters,  who  are  chiefly  Irish,  may 


THK  TKRRACE  BRIDGE  AND  MALL. 


be  seen.  .These  inhabitants  have  the  most  supreme  disregard  for  law  or 
custom  in  planting  their  dwellings.  To  them  the  land  seems  to  "  lie  out 
of  doors,"  without  visible  owners,  bare  and  unproductive.  "Without 
inquiry  they  take  full  possession,  erect  cheap  cabins  upon  the  "  public 
domains,"  and  exercise  "squatter  sovereignty"  in  an  eminent  degree, 
until  some  innovating  owner  disturbs  their  repose  and  their  title,  by 


400 


THE    HUDSON. 


undermining  their  castles — for  in  New  York,  as  in  England,  "every 
man's  house  is  his  castle."  These  form  the  advanced  guard  of  the  growing 
metropolis  ;  and  so  eccentric  is  Fortune  in  the  distribution  of  her  favours 
in  this  land  of  general  equality,  that  a  dweller  in  these  "suburban 
cottages,"  where  swine  and  goats  are  seen  instead  of  deer  and  blood-cattle, 
may,  not  many  years  in  the  future,  occupy  a  palace  upon  Central  Park — 
perhaps,  upon  the  very  spot  where  he  now  uses  a  pig  for  a  pillow,  and 
breakfasts  upon  the  milk  of  she-goats.     In  a  superb  mansion  of  his  own. 


A  SQUATTER  TILLAGE. 


within  an  arrow's  flight  of  Madison  Park,  lived  a  middle-aged  man  in 
1861,  whose  childhood  was  thus  spent  among  the  former  squatters  in  that 
quarter. 

"Jones's  "Woods,"  formerly  occupying  the  space  between  the  Third 
Avenue  and  the  East  River,  and  Sixtieth  and  Eightieth  Streets,  are 
rapidly  disappearing.  Streets  have  been  cut  through  them,  clearings  for 
buildings  have  been  made,  and  that  splendid  grove  of  old  forest  trees  a 
few  years  ago,  has  been  changed  to  clumps,  giving  shade  to  large  numbers 


THE   HUDSON. 


401 


of  plcasurc-soekers  during  the  hot  months  of  summer,  and  the  delightful 
■weeks  of  early  autumn.  There,  in  profound  retirement,  in  an  elegant 
mansion  on  the  hank  of  the  East  River,  lived  David  Provoost,  better 


PROVUOST  S  TOMD— JONES'S  WOODS. 


known  to  the  inhabitants  of  ;N"e-vr  York — more  than  a  hundred  years  ago — 
as  "Eeady-money  Provoost."  This  title  he  acquired  because  of  the 
sudden  increase  of  his  wealth  by  the  illicit  trade  in  which  some  of  the 

3   T 


402 


THE   HUDSON. 


colonists  were  then  engaged,  in  spite  of  the  vigilance  of  the  mother 
country.  He  married  tlic  widow  of  James  Alexander,  and  mother  of 
Lord  Stirling,  an  eminent  American  officer  in  the  old  war  for  indepen- 
dence. In  a  family  vault,  cut  in  a  rocky  knoll  at  the  request  of  his  first 
wife,  he  was  buried,  and  his  remains  were  removed  only  when  it  was 
evident  that  they  would  no  longer  be  respected  by  the  Commissioner  of 
Streets.  It  is  now  a  dilapidated  ruin  near  the  foot  of  Seventy-first  Street. 
The  marble  slab  that  he  placed  over  the  vault  in  memory  of  his  wife  (and 
which  commemorates  him  also)  lies  neglected,  over  the  broken  walls.* 
The  fingers  of  destruction  are  busy  there. 

The  old  Provoost  mansion  is  gone,  and  with  it  has  departed  the  quiet 
of  the  scene.  Near  its  site,  large  assemblages  of  people  listen  to  music, 
hold  festivals,  dance,  partake  of  refreshments  of  almost  every  kind,  and 
fill  the  air  with  the  voices  of  mirtli.  The  Germans,  who  love  the  open 
air,  go  thither  in  large  numbers  ;  end  tents  wherein  higcr  Her  is  sold,  form 
conspicuous  objects  in  tliat  still  half  sylvan  retreat.  There  Bloudiu 
walked  his  rope  at  fearful  heights,  among  the  tall  tulip  trees  ;  and  theie, 
in  autumn,  the  young  people  may  yet  gather  nuts  from  the  hickory  trees, 
and  gorgeous  leaves  from  the  birch,  the  chestnut,  and  the  maple.  But 
half  a  decade  will  not  pass,  before  "Jones's  Woods"  will  be  among  the 
things  that  have  passed  away. 

A  little  beyond  this,  at  Eighty- si.xth  Street,  a  road  leads  down  to 
Astoria  Ferry,  on  the  East  Eiver,  a  short  distance  below  the  mouth  of 
the  Earlem  River.  This  is  a  great  thoroughfare,  as  it  leads  to  many 
pleasant  residences  on  Long  Island,  and  the  delightful  roads  in  that 
vicinity.  From  this  ferry  may  be  obtained  a  fine  view  of  Mill  Eock  in 
the  East  Rivei',  Hallett's  Point,  the  village  of  Astoria,  and  other  places 
of  interest  in  the  vicinity  of  a  dangerous  whirlpool,  named  by  the  Dutch 
Helle-gat  (Hell-hole),  now  called  Hell-gate.  It  is  no  longer  dangerous 
fo  navigators,  the  sunken  rocks  which  formed  the  whirlpool  having  been 
removed  in  1852,  by  submarine  blasting,   in  which  electricity  was  em- 


**  Tlie  slab  bears  llie  follow iiiy  iiiscriptii  n  :  "  Joannaii  IlYXDERe,  who  was  the  niOKt  luvingr  wife  of 
Davitl  Provoost.  It  was  her  will  to  be  iiitened  in  this  hill.  Obitus  8  Xcmbci-,  17JSI,  aged  4a  years." 
•■Siiereii  to  the  mciv.o  y  of  David  rHovtosT,  wh.)  died  Ott.  leili,  17SI,  aged  00  years." 


THE   HUDSON. 


403 


ployed.  This  is  an  interesting  historic  locality.  Here  the  town  records 
of  Newport,  Ehode  Island,  carried  away  by  Sir  Henry  Clinton,  were 
submerged  in  1779,  when  the  British  vessel  that  bore  them  was  wrecked 
near  the  vortex.  They  were  recovered.  Here,  during  the  revolution, 
the  British  frigate  Iluziar  was  wrecked,  and  sunk  in  deep  water,  ha^-ing 
on  board,  it  was  believed,  a  largo  amount  of  specie,  destined  for  the  use 


VIEW  HEAR  HELL-SATE. 


of  the  British  troops  in  America.  On  Mill  Rock,  a  strong  block-house 
was  erected  during  the  war  of  1812;  and  on  Hallett's  Point,  a  military 
work  called  Fort  Stevens  was  constructed  at  the  same  time. 

Near  Hell-gate  the  Harlem  River  enters  the  East  Eiver,  and  not  far 
distant  are  "Ward's  and  Randall's  Islands.  These  belong  to  the  corpora- 
tion of  New  York.     The  former  contains  a  spacious  emigrants'  hospital, 


404  THE   HUDSON. 


and  the  latter  nursery  schools  for  poor  children,  and  a  penal  house  of 
refuge  for  juvenile  delinquents.  This  is  a  delightful  portion  of  the  East 
Eiver,  and  hero  the  lover  of  sport  may  find  good  fishing  at  proper  seasons. 

Ward's  Island  contains  about  200  acres,  and  lies  in  the  East  Eiver, 
from  One  Hundred  and  First  to  One  Hundred  and  Fifteenth  Streets 
inclusive.  The  Indians  called  it  Ten-hen-as.  It  was  purchased  from 
them  by  First  Director  Van  Twilles,  in  1637.  A  portion  of  the  island  is 
a  potter's  field,  where  about  2,500  of  the  poor  and  strangers  are  buried 
annually.  The  island  is  supplied  with  Croton  water.  A  ferry  connects 
it  with  the  city  at  One  Hundred  and  Sixth  Street.  Randall's  Island, 
nearly  north  from  Ward's,  close  by  the  Westchester  shore,  was  the  resi- 
dence of  Jonathan  llandall  for  almost  fifty  years  ;  he  purchased  it  in  1754. 
It  has  been  called,  at  different  times.  Little  Barn  Island,  Eelle  Isle, 
Talbot's  Island,  and  Montressor's  Island.  The  city  purchased  it,  in  1835, 
for  50,000  dollars.  The  House  of  Eefuge  is  on  the  southern  part  of  the 
island,  opposite  One  Hundred  and  Seventeenth  Street.  There  youthful 
criminals  are  kept  free  from  the  contaminating  influence  of  old  offenders, 
arc  taught  useful  trades,  and  are  oontinually  subjected  to  reforming 
influences.  Good  homes  are  furnished  them  when  they  leave  the  institu- 
tion, and  in  this  way  the  children  of  depraved  parents  who  have  entered 
upon  a  career  of  crime,  have  their  feet  set  in  the  paths  of  virtue,  usefulness, 
and  honour. 

Near  the  southern  border  of  "Jones's  Woods"  is  "The  Coloured 
Home,"  where  the  indigent,  sick,  and  inflrm  of  African  blood  have  their 
physical,  moral,  and  religious  wants  supplied.  It  is  managed  by  an 
association  of  women,  and  is  sustained  by  the  willing  hands  of  the 
benevolent. 

A  little  farther  south,  on  the  high  bank  of  the  East  Eiver,  at  Fifty- 
first  Street,  is  the  ancient  family  mansion  of  a  branch  of  the  Beekman 
family,  whose  ancestor  accompanied  Governor  Stuyvesant  to  New 
Amsterdam,  now  New  York.  There  General  Howe  made  his  head- 
quarters after  the  battle  on  Long  Island  and  his  invasion  of  New  York, 
in  177G;  and  there  he  was  made  -Sir  William  Howe,  because  of  those 
events,  by  knightly  ceremonies  performed  by  brother  officers,  at  the  com- 
mand of  the  king.     Captain  Nathan  Hale,  the  spy,  whose  case  and  Major 


THE   HUDSON.  405 


Andre's  have  been  compared,  was  brought  before  General  Howe  at  this 
place  soon  after  his  arrest.  He  was  confined  during  the  night  in  the 
conservatory,  and  the  next  morning,  without  even  the  form  of  a  trial, 
was  handed  over  to  Cunningham,  the  inhuman  provost  marshal,  who 
hanged  him  upon  an  apple-tree,  under  circumstances  of  peculiar  crueliy. 
The  act  was  intended  to  strike  the  minds  of  the  Americans  with  terror ; 
it  only  served  to  exasperate  and  strengthen  them.* 

The  old  Beekman  mansion,  with  its  rural  surroundings,  remained  unin- 
vaded  by  the  Commissioner  of  Streets  until  about  ten  years  ago.  I  re- 
member with  pleasure  a  part  of  the  day  that  I  spent  there  with  the 
hospitable  owner.  Then  there  were  fine  lawns,  with  grand  old  trees, 
blooming  gardens,  the  spacious  conservatory  in  which  Hale  was  confined, 
and  an  ancient  sun-dial  that  had  marked  the  hours  for  a  century.  Over 
the  elaborately-wrought  chimney-pieces  in  the  drawing-room  were  the 
arms  of  the  Beekman  family ;  and  in  an  outhouse  was  a  coach  bearing 
the  same  arms,  that  belonged  to  the  first  proprietor  of  the  mansion.  It 
was  a  fine  old  relic  of  New  York  aristocracy  a  hundred  years  ago,  and 
one  of  only  three  or  four  coaches  owned  in  the  city  at  that  time.  Such 
was  the  prejudice  against  the  name  of  coach — a  sure  sign  of  aristocracy — 
that  Eobert  Murray,  a  wealthy  Quaker  merchant,  called  his  "a  leathern 
conveniency."  But  the  beauty  of  the  Beekman  homestead  has  departed  ; 
the  ground  is  reticulated  by  streets  and  avenues,  and  the  mansion  is  left 
alone  in  its  glory. 

Directly  opposite  to  the  Beekman  mansion  is  the  lower  end  of  Blackwell's 
Island,  a  narrow  strip  of  land  in  the  East  Eiver,  extending  to  Eighty- 
eighth  Street,  and  containing  120  acres.  Beyond  it  is  seen  the  pretty 
village  of  Eavenswood,  on  the  Long  Island  shore.  The  Indians  called 
Blackwell's  Island  Min-na-han-noch.  It  was  also  named  Manning  Island, 
having  been  owned  by  Captain  John  Manning,  who,  in  1672,  betrayed 


*  Nathan  Hale  was  an  exemplary  young  man,  of  a  good  Connecticut  family.  Washington  was 
anxious  to  ascertain  the  exact  position  and  condition  of  the  British  army  on  Long  Island,  and  Hale 
volunteered  to  obtain  it.  He  was  arrested,  and  consigned  to  Cunningham  for  execution.  He  was 
refused  the  services  of  a  clerg^Tnan  and  the  use  of  a  Bible,  and  letters  that  he  wrote  dining  the  night 
to  his  mother  and  sisters  were  destroyed  by  the  inhiunan  marshal.  Hia  last  words  were, — "  I  onl}' 
regret  that  I  have  but  one  life  to  give  to  my  country." 


4  or, 


THE    HUDSON. 


the  fort  at  New  York  into  the  hands  of  the  Dutch.*  In  1828  it  was 
purchased  by  the  city  of  New  Yoilc ,  of  Joseph  Blackwell,  and  appropriated 
to  pulilic  uses.  Upon  it  are  situated  the  almshoiise,  almshouse  hospital, 
peiiiteutiary  hospital,  Now  York  city  small-pox  hospital,  workhouse,  city 
penitentiary,  and  New  York  lunatic  asylum.    These  are  under  the  super- 


THE  BEEKMAlf  MANSIOK. 


vision  of  a  board  of  ten  governors.     There  is  a  free  ferry  to  the  island,  at 
the  foot  of  Sixty-first  Street. 

Turtle  Bav,   at  Fortv-seventh  Street — from   the   southern  border  of 


*  Manning  was  bribed  to  commit  the  treason.    He  escaped  punishment  tlu-ongh  the  intervention  of 
his  Iting,  Cimrles  IT.,  wlio,  it  was  believed,  shared  in  the  bribe. 


THE    HUDSON. 


407 


which  our  sketch  of  UlackweU's  It^hmd  was  taken — was  a  theatre  of  some 
stirring  scenes  during  the  revolution.  Until  'within  a  few  years  it  re- 
mained in  its  primitive  condition — a  sheltered  cove  with  a  gravelly  beach, 
and  high  rocky  shores  covered  with  trees  and  shrubbery.  Here  the 
British  government  had  a  magazine  of  military  stores,  and  these  the  Sons 
of  Liberty,  as  the  early  Kepublicans  were  called,  determined  to  seize,  in 


Tin    LE   UAV   AND   DLACKH'ELL'S  ISLAND. 


July,  1775.  A  party,  under  the  direction  of  active  members  of  that 
association,  proceeded  stealthily  by  water,  in  the  evening,  from  Greenwich, 
Connecticut,  passed  the  dangerous  vortex  of  Hell-gatc  at  twilight,  and  at 
midnight  surprised  and  captured  the  guard,  and  seized  the  stores.  The 
old  storehouse  in  which  they  were  deposited  was  yet  standing,  in  1861, 
a  venerable  relic  of  the  past  among  the  busy  scenes  of  the  present. 


408 


THE   HUDSON. 


At  Turtle  Bay  -wc  fairly  meet  the  city  ia  its  gradual  movement  along 
the  shores  of  the  East  River.  Below  this  point  almost  every  relic  of  the 
past,  in  Nature  and  Art,  has  been  swept  away  by  pick  and  powder ;  and 
wharves,  store-houses,  manufactories,  and  dwellings,  are  occupying  places 
where,  only  a  few  years  ago,  were  pleasant  country  seats,  far  away  from 
the  noise  of  the  town.  Our  ride  in  this  direction  will,  therefore,  have  no 
special  attractions,  so  let  us  turn  towards  the  Hudson  again,  and  visit 
some  points  of  interest  in  the  central  and  lower  portions  of  the  island 
within  the  limits  of  the  regulated  streets.  The  allotted  space  allows  us 
to  take  only  glimpses  at  some  of  the  most  prominent  points  and  objects. 


THE  KESEHVOin,   FIFTH  AVEKIE. 


The  great  distributing  reservoir  of  the  Croton  water,  upon  Murray 
Hill,  between  Fortieth  and  Forty-second  Streets,  and  Fifth  and  Sixth 
Avenues,  challenges  our  attention  and  admiration.  Up  to  and  beyond 
this  point  the  Fifth  Avenue — the  street  of  magnificent  palatial  residences 
— is  completed,  scarcely  a  vacant  lot  remaining  upon  its  borders.  The 
reservoir  stands  in  solemn  and  marked  contrast  to  these  ornamental  struc- 


THE  HUDSON. 


409 


tures,  and  rich  and  gay  accompaniments.  Its  -walls,  in  Egyptian  style, 
arc  of  dark  granite,  and  average  forty-four  feet  in  height  above  the 
adjacent  streets.  Upon  the  top  of  the  wall,  ■which  is  reached  hy  massive 
stops,  is  a  broad  promenade,  from  -whicli  may  be  obtained  very  extensive 
views  of  the  city  and  the  surrounding  country.    This  is  made  secure  by  a 


rIKTU  AVENUE  HOTEL,  M.11>1S0X   P.IRK. 


strong  battlement  of  granite  on  the  outsicle,  and  next  to  the  water  by  an 
iron  fence. 

The  reservoir  covers  an  area  of  two  acres,  and  its  tank  capacity  is  over 
twenty  millions  of  gallons.  The  water  was  first  let  into  it  on  the  4th  of 
July,  1842.  On  the  14th  of  October  following  it  was  distributed  over 
the  town,   and  the  event  was  celebrated  on  that  day  by  an  immense 


410 


THE    HUD«ON. 


military  and  civic  procession.  Such  a  display  had  never  been  seen  in 
New  York  since  the  mingling  of  the  waters  of  the  Great  Lake  and  the 
Hudson  River,  through  the  Erie  Canal,  was  celebrated  in  1825. 

At  the  request  of  the  Corporation  of  the  City  of  New  York,  George  P. 
Morris  wrote  the  following  Ode,  which  was  sung  near  the  fountain  then 
playing  in  the  City  Hall  Park,  by  the  members  of  the  New  York  Sacred 
Music  Society : — 

THE  CROTON   ODE. 


Gushing  from  this  living  fountain, 

Music  pours  a  falling  strain. 
As  llie  godfless  of  the  mountain 

Comes  with  all  her  sparkling  train. 
From  her  grotto  springs  advancing, 

Glittering  in  her  feathPiy  spray. 
Woodland  fnys  beside  her  dancing, 

She  pursues  her  winding  way. 


Geully  o'er  the  rippling  water, 

In  her  coral  shallop  bright, 
Glides  the  rock -kings  dove-eyed  diiughter. 

Decked  in  robes  of  virgin  white. 
Nymphs  and  Naiads  sweetly  smiling, 

Urge  her  bark  with  pearly  Land, 
Merrily  the  sylph  beguil-'ig 

From  the  nooks  of  fairy-laud. 


Swimming  on  the  snow-curled  biltuw. 

See  the  river  spirits  fair 
Lay  their  cheeks,  as  on  a  pillow. 

With  the  foam-bead3  in  their  h;nr. 
Tims  attended,  hither  wending, 

Floats  tlie  lovely  Oread  now, 
Eden's  arch  of  promise  bending 

Over  her  translucent  brow. 


Hail  the  wanderer  from  a  far  land ! 

Bind  her  flowing  tresses  up ! 
Crown  her  with  a  fadeless  garland, 

Aud  with  ciystal  brim  the  cup  ; 
From  her  haunts  of  deep  seclusion, 

Let  Intemperance  greet  her  too, 
And  the  heat  of  his  delusion 

Sprinkle  with  this  mountain-dew. 


THE   HUDSON.  411 


T. 

Water  leaps  as  if  delighted, 

While  her  conquered  foes  retire  ! 
Pale  Cuiitafrion  flies  affrighted 

With  the  Imlfled  demon  Firel 
Safety  dwells  in  her  dominions, 

Heahh  and  Beauty  with  her  move, 
And  entwine  their  circling  pinions 

In  a  sisterhood  of  love. 


Water  shouts  a  glad  hosanna ! 

Bubbles  up  tiie  eai1h  to  bless! 
Cheers  it  like  the  precious  manna 

In  the  barren  wilderness. 
Here  we  wondering  gaze,  assembled 

Like  the  gi-ateful  Hebrew  band, 
^\'^len  the  hidden  fountain  trembled, 

And  obeyed  tlie  prophet^a  wand. 


Round  the  aqueducts  of  stor)-, 

As  the  mists  of  Lethe  throng, 
Croton's  waves  in  all  llieirgloiy 

Troop  in  melody  along. 
Ever  sparkling,  bright,  and  single. 

Will  this  rock-ribbed  stream  appear. 
When  posterity  shall  mingle 

Like  the  gathered  waters  liere. 


The  waters  of  the  Croton  flow  from  the  dam  to4:he  distributing  reser- 
voir, forty  miles  and  a  half,  through  a  covei'cd  canal,  made  of  stone  and 
brick,  at  an  average  depth  of  2|  feet.  The  usual  flow  is  about  30,000,000 
of  gallons  a  day;  its  capacity  is  60,000,000.  It  passes  through  sixteen 
tunnels  in  rock,  varying  from  160  to  1,263  feet.  In  "Westchester  county 
it  crosses  twenty-five  streams,  from  12  to  70  feet  below  the  line  of  gi'ade, 
besides  numerous  small  brooks  furnished  with  culverts.  After  crossing 
the  Harlem  Eiver  over  the  high  bridge  already  described,  it  passes  the 
Manhattan  valley  by  an  inverted  siphon  of  iron  pipes,  4, 1 80  feet  in  length, 
and  the  Clendening  valley  on  an  aqueduct  1,900  feet.  It  then  enters 
the  first  receiving  reservoir,  now  in  the  Central  Park,  which  has  a  capacity 
of  150,000,000  gallons.  In  a  hygienic  and  economic  view,  the  importance 
of  this  great  work  cannot  be  estimated ;  in  insurance  alone  it  caused  the 
reduction  of  40  cents  on  every  100  dollars  in  the  annual  rates.  It  is 
estimated  that  the  capacity  of  the  Croton  River  is  sufficient  to  supply  the 


412 


THE   HUDSON. 


city  with  a  population  of  5,000,000.  The  ridge  line,  or  water-shed,  en- 
closing the  Croton  valley  above  the  dam,  is  101  miles  in  length.  The 
stream  is  39  miles  in  length,  and  its  tributaries  13G  miles.*  The  total 
area  of  the  valley  is  352  square  miles ;  within  it  arc  thirty-one  natural 
lakes  and  ponds. 

From  tlic  reservoir  we  ride  down  Fifth  A.venuc,  the  chief  fashionable 


WOBTH'a  MONUMENT. 


quarter  of  the  metropolis.     For  two  miles  we  may  pass  between  houses 
of  the  most  costly  description,  built  chiefly  of  brown  freestone,  some  of  it 


*  The  principal  one  of  the  remote  soui'ces  of  the  Croton  Eiver  is  a  spring  near  llie  road  side,  not  far 
from  the  house  of  WilHam  Hoag,  on  Quaker  Hill,  in  the  town  of  Pawling.  Tlie  spring  is  by  the  side  of 
a  stone  fence,  with  a  ban-el-curb,  and  is  1,300  feet  above  tide  water. 


THE   HUDSON.  413 


elaborately  carved.  Travellers  agree  that  in  no  city  in  the  world  can  be 
found  an  equal  number  of  really  splendid  mansions  in  a  single  street ; 
tbey  are  furnished,  also,  in  princely  style.  The  side-walks  are  flagged 
with  heavy  blue  stone,  or  granite,  and  the  street  is  paved  with  blocks  of 
the  latter  material.  At  Madison  Square,  between  Twenty-third  and 
Twenty-sixth_Streets,  it  is  crossed  diagonally  by  Broadway,  and  there,  as 
an  exception,  are  a  few  business  establishments.  At  the  intersection,  and 
fronting  Madison  Park,  is  the  magnificent  Fifth  Avenue  Hotel,  built  of 
white  marble,  and  said  to  be  the  largest  and  most  elegant  in  the  world. 
As  we  look  up  from  near  the  St.  Germain,  this  immense  house,  six  stories 
in  height,  is  seen  on  the  left,  and  the  trees  of  Madison  Park  on  the  right. 
In  the  middle  distance  is  the  Worth  House,  a  large  private  boarding 
establishment,  and  near  it  the  granite  monument  erected  by  the  city  of 
New  York  to  the  memory  of  the  late  General  William  J.  Worth,  of  the 
United  States  army. 

This  is  the  only  public  monument  in  the  city  of  K'ew  "Y  ork,  except  a 
mural  one  to  the  memory  of  General  Montgomery,  in  the  front  wall  of 
St.  Paul's  Church.  It  is  of  Quincy  granite ;  the  apex  is  fifty-one  feet 
from  the  ground,  and  the  smooth  surface  of  the  shaft  is  broken  by  raised 
bands,  on  which  are  the  names  of  the  battles  in  which  General  Worth 
had  been  engaged.  On  the  lower  section  of  the  shaft  are  representations 
of  military  trophies  in  relief.  General  Worth  was  an  aide-de-camp  of 
General  Scott  in  the  battles  of  Chippewa  and  Niagara,  in  the  summer  of 
1814,  and  went  through  the  war  with  Mexico  with  distinction.  His 
name  holds  an  honourable  place  among  the  military  heroes  of  his  country. 
The  monument  was  erected  in  1858. 


CHAPTEE    XXII. 

]  OWN  Broadway,  a  few  streets  below  the  Fifth  Avenue 
Hotel,  is  Union  Park,  whose  form  is  an  ellipse.  It 
is  at  the  head  of  Old  Broadway,  at  Fourteenth  Street, 
and  is  at  such  an  elevation  that  the  Hudson  and  East 
Rivers  may  both  bo  seen  by  a  spectator  on  its 
Fourteenth  Street  front.  It  is  a  small  enclosure,  with  a  large 
fountain,  and  pleasantly  shaded  with  young  trees.  Only  a  few 
years  ago  this  vicinity  was  an  open  common,  and  where  Union 
Park  is  was  a  high  hill.  On  its  northern  side  is  the  Everett 
House,  a  large,  first-class  hotel,  named  in  honour  of  Edward 
Everett,  the  American  scholar  and  statesman,  who  represented  his  country 
at  the  Court  of  St.  James's  a  few  years  ago.  On  its  southern  side  is  the 
Union  Park  Hotel,  and  around  it  are  houses  that  were  first-class  a  dozen 
years  ago.  In  one  of  the  four  triangles  outside  the  square  is  a  bronze 
equestrian  statue  of  Washington,  by  H.  K.  Brown,  an  American  sculptor, 
standing  upon  a  high  granite  pedestal,  surrounded  by  heavy  iron  raOings. 
This  is  the  only  public  statue  in  the  city  of  New  York,  if  we  except  a  small 
sandstone  one  in  the  City  Hall  Park,  and  a  marble  one  of  William  Pitt, 
at  the  corner  of  Franklin  Street  and  West  Broadway,  which  stood  at  the 
junction  of  Wall  and  William  Streets,  when  the  old  war  for  independence 
broke  out.  The  latter  is  only  a  torso,  the  head  and  arms  having  been 
broken  off  by  the  British  soldiery  after  Sir  William  Howe  took  possession 
of  the  city  in  the  autumn  of  1776.*'  In  our  little  picture  we  look  up  the 
Fourth  Avenue,  which  extends  to  Harlem,  and  from  which  proceed  two 
great  railways,  namely,  the  Harlem,  leading  to  Albany,  and  the  New 
Haven,  that  connects  with  all  the  railways  in  New  England.  On  the 
left,  by  the  side  of  Union  Park,  is  seen  a  marquee,  the  head-quarters  of 

*  This  broken  statue  has  disappeared  since  the  above  was  written. 


THK   HUDSON. 


415 


a  regiment  of  Zouave  volunteers  for  the  United  States  army.     These 
signs  of  war  might  then  be  seen  in  all  parts  of  the  city. 

Let  us  turn  here  and  ride  through  broad  Fourteenth  Street,  towards 
the  East  Eiver,  passing  the  Opera  House  on  the  way.  "We  are  going  to 
visit  the  oldest  living  thing  in  the  city  of  New  York, — an  ancient  pear- 
tree,  at  the  corner   of  Thirteenth  Street   and   Third  Avenue.     It  was 


UMON   PARK. 


brought  from  Holland  by  Peter  Stuyvesant,  the  last  and  most  renowned 
of  the  governors  of  New  Netherland  (New  York)  while  it  belonged  to  the 
Dutch.  Stuyvesant  brought  the  tree  from  Holland,  and  planted  it  in  his 
garden  in  the  year  1647.  I  believe  it  was  never  known  to  fail  in  bear- 
ing fruit.     Many  of  the  pears  have  been  preserved  in  liquor  as  curiosities, 


416 


THE   HUDSON. 


and  many  a  twig  has  left  the  parent  stem  for  transplantation  in  far  distant 
soil.     The  tree  seems  to  have  vigour  enough  to  last  another  ccntuiy. 

Stuyvesant's  dwelling,  upon  his  "Bowerie  estate,"  was  near  the  present 
St.  Mark's  Church,  Tenth  Street,  and  Second  Avenue.  It  was  huilt  of 
small  yellow  brick,  imported  from  Holland.  To  this  secluded  spot  he 
retired  when  he  was  compelled  to  surrender  the  city  and  province  to  the 


STL'lViiSANT   I'EAB  TREK. 


English,  in  1664.  There  he  lived  with  his  family  for  eighteen  years, 
employed  in  agricultural  pursuits.  He  huilt  a  chapel,  at  his  own  cost,  on 
the  site  of  St.  Mark's,  and  in  u  vault  within  it  ho  was  buried.  The  slab 
of  brown  freestone  that  covered  it,  and  which  now  occupies  a  place  in 
the  rear  wall  of  St.  Mark's,  bears  the  following  inscription :—"  In  this 
vault  lies  Petetjs  Stui-vesant,  late  Captain-General  and  Commander-in- 


THE   HUDSON. 


417 


chief  of  Amsterdam,  in  Now  Netherlands,  now  called  New  York,  nnd  the 
Dutch  "West  India  Islands.  Died,  August,  a.b.  1682,  aged  eighty 
years."* 

St.  Mark's  Church,  seen  on  the  left  in  our  little  sketch,  now  ranks 
among  the  older  church  edifices  in  the  city.  It  was  huilt  in  1799,  and 
several  of  the  descendants  of  Peter  Stuyvcsant  have  heen,  and  still  are, 
members  of  the  congregation.  "When  erected,  it  was  more  than  a  mile 
from  the  city,  in  the  midst  of  pleasant 

country   seats.       The    old    Stuyvesant  ,— ™=--=  -_-.^ 

mansion  was  yet  standing,  and  the 
"  Bowery  Lane "  (now  the  broad 
street  called  the  Bowery),  and  the  old 
Boston  Port  road,  were  the  nearest 
highways.  Near  it,  on  the  Second 
Avenue,  is  seen  a  Gothic  edifice — the 
Baptist  Tabernacle— by  the  side  of 
which  is  a  square  building  of  drab 
freestone,  belonging  to  the  New  York 
Historical  Society.  The  latter  is  one 
of  the  most  flourishing  and  important 

associations  in  New  York,  and  numbers  among  its  membership — resident, 
corresponding,  and  honorary — many  of  the  best  minds  in  America  and 
Europe.  It  has  a  very  large  and  valuable  library,  and  an  immense 
collection  of  manuscripts  and  rare  things ;  also  the  entire  collection  of 
Egyptian  antiquities  brought  to  the  United  States  by  the  late  Dr.  Abbott, 
several  marbles  from  Nineveh,  and  a  choice  gallery  of  pictures,  chiefly  by 
American  artists,  f 


STUITESAKT'S   HOUSE. 


•  Peter  Stuyvesant  was  a  native  of  Holland  :  he  was  bred  to  the  art  of  war,  and  had  been  in  public 
life,  as  Governor  of  Cura^oa,  before  he  assumed  the  government  of  New  Netherlands.  He  was  a  man 
of  dignity,  Iionest  and  true.  He  was  energetic,  aristocratic,  and  overbearhig.  His  deportment  made 
him  unpopular  with  tlie  people,  yet  his  sen'ices  were  of  vastly  more  value  to  them  and  the  province  than 
those  of  any  of  his  predecessors.  He  was  "  Peter  the  Headstrong  "  in  Kniekeibocker's  burlesque  history 
of  New  York,  wi-itten  by  Irving,  who  describes  him  as  a  man  "  of  such  immense  activity  and  decision 
of  mind,  that  he  never  sought  nor  accepted  the  advice  of  others."  .  ..."  A  tough,  sturdy,  valiant, 
weather-beaten,  mettlesome,  obstinate,  leather-sided,  lion-liearted,  generous-spirited  old  governor." 

t  The  New  York  Historical  Society  was  organised  in  December,  ISOl.  Its  fire-proof  building,  in 
which  its  collections  are  deposited,  was  completed  in  the  autumn  of  18.57. 

3    H 


418 


THE   HUDSON. 


In  a  cluster,  a  short  distance  from  St.  Mark's,  are  the  Bible  House, 
Cooper  Institute,  Clinton  Hall,  and  Astor  Library,*  places  which  intel- 
ligent strangers  in  the  city  should  not  pass  by.     The  first  three  are  seen 


BT.   MARK  S  OnURCn  AND  HISIOEICAL  SOCIETY  DOUSE. 

in  our  sketch,  the  Bible  House  on  the  right,  the  Cooper  Institute  on 


*  The  New  York  Society  Library,  in  University  Place,  is  tlie  oldest  public  libraiy  in  the  United 
States.  It  was  incorporated  in  the  year  1700,  nnder  the  title  of  "  The  PubUc  Library  of  New  York." 
Its  name  was  changed  to  its  present  one  in  17-54,    It  contains  almost  50,000  volumes. 


THE  HUDSON. 


419 


the  Itft,   and   Clintou   Hall   in  the  distance.      The  open  area  is  Astor 
Place. 

The  Bible  House  occupies  a  whole  block  or  square.  It  belongs  to  the 
American  Bible  Society.  A  large  portion  of  the  building  is  devoted  to 
the  business  of  the  association.  Blank  paper  is-  delivered  to  the  presses 
in  the  sixth  story,  and  proceeds  downwards  through  regular  stages  of 


DIBLE  HOUSE,  COOPEB  INSTITUTE,   AND  CLINTON  HALL. 


manufacture,  until  it  reaches  the  depository  for  distribution  on  the  ground 
floor,  in  the  form  of  finished  books.  A  large  number  of  religious  and 
kindred  societies  hare  offices  in  this  building. 

The  Cooper  Institute  is  the  pride  of  New  York,  for  it  is  the  creation  of 
a  single  New  York  merchant,  Peter  Cooper,  Esq.  The  building,  of 
brown   freestone,   occupies   an   entire   block   or   square,    and   cost   over 


420 


THE   HUDSON. 


300,000  dollars.  The  primary  object  of  the  founder  is  the  advancement 
of  science,  and  Icnowledge  of  the  useful  arts,  and  to  this  end  all  tlie 
interior  arrangements  of  the  edifice  were  made.  AVhen  it  was  completed, 
Mr.  Cooper  formally  conveyed  the  whole  property  to  trustees,  to  bo 
devoted  to  the  public  good.*  By  his  munificence,  benevolence,  and 
wisdom  displayed  in  this  gift  to  his  countrymen,  Mr.  Cooper  takes  rank 
among  the  great  benefactors  of  mankind. 

Clinton  Hall  belongs  to  the  Mercantile  Library  Association,  which  is 
composed  chiefly  of  merchants  and  merchants'  clerks.  It  has  a  member- 
ship of  between  four  and  five  thousand  persons,  and  a  library  of  nearly 
seventy  thousand  volumes.  The  building  was  formerly  the  Astor  Place 
Opera  House,  and  in  the  open  space  around  it  occurred  the  memorable 
riot  occasioned  by  the  quarrel  between  Forrest  and  Macready,  to  which 
allusion  has  been  made. 

Near  Astor  Place,  on  Lafayette  Place,  is  the  Astor  Library,  created  by 
the  munificence  of  the  American  Croesus,  John  Jacob  Astor,  who 
bequeathed  for  the  purpo.se  400,000  dollars.  The  building  (made  larger 
than  at  first  designed,  by  the  liberality  of  the  son  of  the  founder,  and 
chief  inheritor  of  his  property)  is  capable  of  holding  200,000  volumes. 
More  than  half  that  number  are  there  now.  The  building  occupies  a 
portion  of  the  once  celebrated  Vauxhall  Gardens,  a  place  of  amusement 
thirty  years  ago. 

Let  us  now  ride  down  the  Bowery,  the  broadest  street  in  the  city,  and 
lined  almost  wholly  with  small  retail  shops.  It  leads  us  to  Franklin 
Square,  a  small  triangular  space  at  the  junction  of  Pearl  and  Cherry 
Streets.  This,  in  the  "  olden  time,"  was  the  fashionable  quarter  of  the 
city,  and  was  remarkable  first  for  the  great  Walton  House,  and  a  little 
later  as  the  vicinity  of  the  residence  of  Washington  during  the  first  year 
of  his  administration  as  first  President  of  the  United  States.  That 
building  was  No.  10,  Cherry  Street.     By  the  demolition  of  some  houses 


»  Tlie  chief  operations  of  tlie  Inslilute  (whicli  Mr.  Cooper  calls  "  Tlie  Union")  are  free  inslniction 
of  classes  in  science  anil  the  useful  arts,  and  free  lectures.  The  first  anJ  second  stories  are  rented,  the 
proceeds  of  which  are  devoted  to  defraying  the  expenses  of  the  establishment.  In  the  basement  is  a 
lecture-room  125  feet  hy  62  feet,  and  21  feet  in  height.  The  three  upper  stories  are  arranged  for 
pui-poses  of  instruction.    There  is  a  large  hall,  with  a  gallery,  designed  for  a  free  Public  Exchange. 


THE    HUDSON. 


421 


between  it  and  Franklin  Square,  it  formed  a  front  on  that  open  space. 
In  185G,  tlie  BoTvery  was  continued  from  Chatham  Square  to  Franklin 
Square,  when  this  and  adjacent  buildings  were  demolished,  and  larger 
edifices  erected  on  their  sites.  There  Washington  held  his  first  levees, 
and  there  Mr.  Hammond,  the  first  resident  minister  from  England  sent  to 
the  new  llepublic,  was  received  by  the  chief  magistrate  of  the  Eepublic. 


■WASHINGTON'S  EESIDENCE   AS  IT   APPEAEED  IN   1850. 


The  chief  attraction  to  the  stranger  at  Franklin  Square  at  the  present 
time,  is  the  extensive  printing  and  publishing  house  of  Haeper  and 
Bkothees. 

The  Walton  House,  now  essentially  changed  in  appearance,  was  by  far 
the  finest  specimen  of  domestic  architecture  in  the  city  or  its  suburbs. 


422  THE    HUDSON. 


It  stood  alone,  in  the  midst  of  trees  and  shrubbery,  with  a  beautiful 
garden  covering  the  slope  between  it  and  the  East  river.  It  was  built 
by  a  ■wealthy  shipowner,  a  brother  of  Admiral  "Walton,  of  the  British 
navy,  in  pure  English  style.  It  attracted  great  attention.  A  lately- 
deceased  resident  of  New  York  once  informed  me,  that  when  he  was  a 
schoolboy  and  lived  in  "Wall  Street,  he  was  frequently  rewai-ded  for  good 
behaviour,  by  permission  to  "  go  out  on  Saturday  afternoon  to  see  Master 
Walton's  grand  house."  The  family  arms,  carved  in  wood,  remained 
over  the  street  door  until  18.50.  It  was  a  place  of  great  resort  for  the 
British  officers  during  the  war  for  independence  ;  and  there  William  lY., 
tlien  a  midshipman  under  Admiral  Digby,  was  entertained  with  the 
courtesy  due  to  a  jirince. 

On  the  site  of  the  residence  of  Walter  Eranklin,  a  Quaker  and  wealthy 
merchant,  whose  name  the  locality  commemorates,  stand  the  Harpers' 
magnificent  structures  of  brick  and  iron  (the  front  all  iron),  which  soon 
arose  from  the  ashes  of  their  old  establishment,  consumed  near  the  close 
of  1853.  There  are  two  buildings,  the  rear  one  fronting  on  Cliff  Street. 
The  latter  is  seven  stories  in  height,  and  the  one  on  Franklin  Square  six 
stories,  exclusive  of  the  basements  and  sub-cellars.  Between  them  is  a 
court,  in  which  is  a  lofty  brick  tower,  with  an  interior  spiral  staircase. 
From  this  iron  bridges  extend  to  the  different  stories.  The  buildings  are 
almost  perfectly  fire-proof.  It  is  the  largest  establishment  of  its  kind  in 
the  United  States.  Over  six  hundred  persons  are  usually  employed  in  it. 
It  was  founded  nearly  fifty  years  ago,  by  two  of  the  four  brothers  who 
compose  the  firm.  They  are  all  yet  (186G)  actively  engaged  in  the 
management  of  the  affairs  of  the  house,  with  several  of  their  sons,  and 
may  be  found  during  business  hours,  ever  ready  to  extend  the  hand  of 
cordial  welcome  to  strangers,  and  to  give  them  the  opportunity  to  see  the 
operation  of  book-making  in  all  its  departments,  and  in  the  greatest 
perfection. 

On  our  way  from  Franklin  Square  to  the  Hudson,  by  the  most  direct 
route,  we  cross  the  City  Hall  Park,  which  was  known  a  century  ago  as 
"  The  Fields."  It  was  then  an  open  common  on  the  northern  border  of 
the  city,  at  "the  Forks  of  the  Broadway."  It  is  triangular  in  form. 
The  great  thoroughfare  of  Broadway  is  on  its  western  side,  and  the  City 


THE   HUDSON. 


423 


Hall,  a  spacious  edifice  of  white  marble,  stands  in  its  centre.  Near  its 
southern  end  is  a  large  fountain  of  Croton  water.  On  its  eastern  side 
was  a  declivity  overlooking  "  Beekman's  Swamp."  That  section  of  the 
city  is  still  known  as  "The  Swamp" — the  great  leather  mart  of  the 
metropolis.  On  the  brow  of  that  declivity,  where  Tammany  Hall  now 
stands,  Jacob  Leisler,  "the  people's  governor,"  when  James  II.  left  the 


FEASKLIK  SQUABE. 


English  tlirone  and  William  of  Orange  ascended  it,  was  hanged,  having 
been  convicted  on  the  false  accusation  of  being  a  disloyal  usurper.  He  was 
the  victim  of  a  jealous  and  corrupt  aristocracy,  and  was  the  first  and  last 
man  ever  put  to  death  for  treason  .^lone  within  the  domain  of  the  United 
States  down  to  the  close  of  the  Civil  War  in  1865. 


424 


THE    HUDSON. 


When  the  war  for  independence  was  kindling,  the  Field  became  the 
theatre  of  many  stirring  scenes.  There  the  inhabitants  assembled  to  hear 
the  harangues  of  political  leaders  and  pass  resolves:  there  "liberty  poles" 
were  erected  and  prostrated;  and  there  soldiers  and  people  had  collisions. 
There  obnoxious  men  were  hung  in  effigy ;  and  there  at  six  o'clock  in  the 


BROADTVAY  AT  ST.   PAUL'S. 


evening  of  a  sultry  day  in  July,  1776,  the  Declaration  of  Independence 
was  read  to  one  of  the  brigades  of  the  Continental  Army,  then  in  the  city 
under  the  command  of  Washington. 

The  vicinity  of  the  lower  or  southern  end  of  the  park  lias  ever  been  a 


THE    HUDSON.  425 


point  of  much  interest.  On  tie  site  of  Barnum's  Museum,''-'  the  "  Sons  of 
Liberty"  in  New  York — the  ultra-republicans  before  the  revolution — had 
a  meeting-place,  called  "Hampden  Hall."  Opposite  was  St.  Paul's 
Church,  a  chapel  of  Trinity  Church ;  where,  in  after  years,  when  the 
objects  for  which  the  "Sons  of  Liberty"  had  been  organised  were 
accomplished,  namely,  the  independence  of  the  colonies,  the  Te  I)enm 
Zaudamus  was  sung  by  a  vast  multitude,  on  the  occasion  of  the  inaugura- 
tion of  "Washington  (who  was  present),  as  the  first  chief  magistrate  of  the 
United  States.  There  it  yet  stands,  on  the  most  crowded  portion  of 
Broadway  (where  various  omnibus  lines  meet),  a  venerable  relic  of  the 
past,  clustered  with  important  and  interesting  associations.  Around  it 
are  the  graves  of  the  dead  of  several  generations.  Under  its  great  front 
window  is  a  mural  monument  erected  to  the  memory  of  General 
Jlontgomery,  who  fell  at  the  siege  of  Quebec,  in  1775  :  and  a  few  feet 
f.om  its  venerable  walls  is  a  marble  obelisk,  standing  at  the  grave  of 
Thomas  Addis  Emmet,  brother  of,  and  co-worker  with  the  eminent  Robert 
Emmet,  who  perished  on  the  scaffold  during  the  uprising  of  the  Irish 
people  against  the  British  government,  in  1798. 

Passing  down  Broadway,  we  soon  roach  Trinity  Church,  founded  at 
the  close  of  the  seventeenth  century.  The  present  is  the  fourth  edifice, 
on  the  same  site.  Soon  after  the  British  army  took  possession  of  New 
York,  in  September,  1776,  a  fire  broke  out  in  the  lower  part  of  the  town. 
Five  hundred  edifices  were  consumed — an  eighth  of  all  that  were  in  the 
city.  Trinity  Church  (the  second  edifice)  was  among  the  number 
destroyed.  It  was  rebuilt  in  1788,  and  taken  down  in  1839.  The 
present  fine  building  was  then  commenced,  and  was  completed  in  1843. 
Within  the  burial-ground  around  the  chm-ch,  and  the  most  conspicuous 
object  there,  is  the  magnificent  brown  freestone  monument,  erected  by 
order  of  the  vestry,  in  1852,  and  dedicated  as  "Sacred  to  the  Memory," 
as  an  inscription  upon  it  says,  "  of  those  brave  and  good  men  who  died, 
whilst  imprisoned  in  the  city,  for  their  devotion  to  the  cause  of  American 
Independence."     Hereby  is  indicated  a  great  change,  wrought  by  time. 


»  The  Museum  building  (seen  opposite  St.  Paul's  in  the  pictiu-e),with  ill  its  contents,  was  destroyed 
liy  fire  in  1SG3. 

3  I 


426 


THE   HUDSON. 


When  these  "brave  and  good  men"  were  in  prison,  one  of  their  most 
unrelenting  foes  was  Dr.  Inglis,  the  Rector  of  Trinity,  because  they  were 
"devoted  to  the  cause  of  American  Independence."*  The  church  fronts 
Wall  Street,  the  site  of  the  wooden  palisades  or  wall  that  extended  from 
the  Hudson  to  the  East  River,  across  the  island,  when  it  belonged  to  the 


SOLDIERS'  MO-NVMENT  IS  TBISITl'   CHUBCHYARP. 

Dutch.     Here  we  enter  the  ancient  domain  of  New  Amsterdam,  a  city 
around  which  the  mayor  was  required  to  walk  every  morning  at  sunrise, 


*  Vvlien  Washinfrfon  an-ived  in  New  York  with  troops  from  Boston,  in  the  spring  of  1776,  he  ocenpied 
a  house  in  Pearl  Street,  near  Liberty,  not  far  from  Trinity  Church.  Being  a  communicant  of  the 
Church  of  England,  he  attended  Divine  service  there.  On  Sunday  morning,  one  of  Washington's 
generals  called  on  Dr.  Inglis,  and  requested  him  to  omit  the  violent  prayer  for  the  king  and  royal  family. 
He  paid  no  regard  to  it.  He  afterwards  said  to  that  officer,  "It  is  in  your  power  to  shut  up  the  churches, 
but  you  cannot  make  the  clergy  depart  from  their  duty."  Tlie  prisoners  alluded  to  in  the  inscription  on 
the  monument,  were  those  who  died  in  the  old  Sugar-hmises  of  the  city,  which  were  used  for  hospitals. 
Many  of  them  were  buried  in  the  north  part  of  Trinity  Churchyard. 


THE    HUDSON. 


427 


unlock  all  the  gates,  and  give  the  key  to  the  commander  of  the  fort. 
Such  was  New  York  two  hundred  years  ago.* 

According  to  early  accounts,  New  Amsterdam  must  have  been  a  quaint 
old  town  in  Stuyvesant's  time,  at  about  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  It  was,  in  style,  a  reproduction  of  a  Dutch  village  of  that 
period,  when  modest  brick  mansions,  with  terraced  gables  fronting  the 
street,  were  mingled  with  steep-roofed  cottages  with  dormer  windows  in 
sides  and  gables.  It  was  then  compactly  built.  The  area  within  the 
palisades  was  not  large ;  settlers  in  abundance  came  ;  and  for  several  years 
few  ventured  to  dwell  remote  from  the  town,  because  of  the  hostUe 
Indians,  who  swarmed  in  the  surrounding  forests.  The  toleration  that 
had  made  Holland  an  asylum  for  the  oppressed,  was  practised  here  to  its 
fullest  extent.  "Do  you  wish  to  buy  a  lot,  build  a  house,  and  become  a 
citizen?"  was  the  usual  question  put  to  a  stranger.  His  affirmative 
answer,  with  proofs  of  its  sincerity,  was  a  sufficient  passport.  They 
pryed  not  into  private  opinion  or  belief ;  and  bigotry  could  not  take  root 
and  flourish  in  a  soil  so  inimical  to  its  growth.  The  inhabitants  were 
industrious,  thrifty,  simple  in  manners  and  living,  hospitable,  neigh- 
bourly, and  honest ;  and  all  enjoyed  as  full  a  share  of  human  happiness 
as  a  mild  despotism  would  allow,  until  the  interloping  "  Yankees  "  from 
the   Puritan   settlements,    and    the    conquering,    overbearing    English, 


*  The  harbour  of  New  York  was  discovered  by  Hudson  in  September,  1609.  It  is  suppo3ed  to  have 
been  entered  twentj--five  year^  earlier,  by  Verrazani,  a  Florentine.  Traders  speedily  came  after  the 
discovery  was  proclaimed,  and  established  a  trading-house  at  Albany.  In  1613,  Captain  Block  builL  u 
ship  near  the  Bowling  Green,  to  replace  tlie  one  in 
which  he  sailed  from  Holland,  and  which  was  acci- 
dentally burnt.  A  Dulch  West  India  Company  was 
fonned  in  1621,  with  all  the  elementary  powers  of 
govenmaent.  Their  charter  gave  them  territorial 
dominion,  and  the  country,  called  New  Netlierland, 
was  made  a  county  of  Holland.  The  seal  bore  the 
representation  of  a  beaver  rampant—  an  animal  very 
valuable  for  its  fur,  and  then  abundant.  The  seal  of 
the  city  of  New  York  (seen  in  the  engraving)  has 
the  beaver  in  one  of  its  quarteruigs.  New  Amster- 
dam remained  in  tlie  possession  of  the  Dutch  until 
1664.  when  it  was  surrendered  into  the  hands  of  the 
English,  on  demand  being  made,  in  the  presence  of 

numerous  ships  of  war,  laden  with  land  troops.  Then  the  name  was  changed  from  New  Amsterdam  to 
New  York,  in  honour  of  James,  Duke  of  Y'ork,  afterwards  James  II.,  to  whom  the  whole  domain  had 
been  granted  by  his  profligate  brother,  King  Charles. 


SEALS  OF  NEW  AMSTEED.IM  AND  NEW  I'ORK. 


428 


THE   HUDSON. 


disturbed  their  repose,  and  made  society  alarmingly  cosmopolitan.  This 
feature  increased  with  the  lapse  of  time  ;  and  now  that  little  Dutch 
trading  village  two  hundred  years  ago — grown  into  a  vast  commercial 
metropolis,  and  ranking  among  the  most  populous  cities  of  the  world — 
contains  representatives  of  almost  every  nation  on  the  face  of  the  earth. 
Broadway,  the  famous  street  of  commercial  palaces,  terminates  at  a 


DUTCH  MAHSION  AND   COTTAGE  IN  NEW  AMBTEBDASI. 


shaded  mall  and  green,  called  "The  Battery,"  a  name  derived  from 
fortifications  that  once  existed  there.  The  first  fort  erected  on  Manhattan 
Island,  by  the  Dutch,  was  on  the  banks  of  the  Hudson,  at  its  mouth,  in 
the  rear  of  Trinity  Church.  The  next  was  built  upon  the  site  of  the 
Bowling  Green,  at  the  foot  of  Broadway.     These  were  on  eminences  over- 


THE    nUDSON. 


4:.''J 


looking  the  bay.  The  latter  was  a  stronger  work,  and  became  permanent. 
It  was  called  Fort  Amsterdam.  The  palisades  on  the  line  of  "Wall  Street 
(and  which  suggested  its  name)  were  of  cedar,  and  were  plaated  in  1653, 
when  an  English  invading  force  was  expected.  In  1692,  the  English, 
apprehensive  of  a  Erench  invasion,  built  a  strong  battery  on  a  rocky  point 
at  the  eastern  end  of  tlie  present  Battery,  at  the  foot  of  White  Hall  Street. 
Finally  a  stone  fort,  with  four  bastions,  was  erected.  It  covered  a  portion 
of  the  ground  occupied  by  the  Battery  of  to-day.     It  was  called  Fort 


0ffipBMifmMM!i^;;--^ 


THE  BOWLIXG   GBEEN  AND   FORT  GEOEGE   IX   1733.» 


George,  in  honour  of  the  then  reigning  sovereign  of  England.     Within  its 
walls  were  the  governor's  house  and  most  of  the  government  oflSces. 

In  the  vicinity  of  the  fort  many  stirring  scenes  were  enacted  when  the 
old  war  for  independence  was  kindling.  Hostile  demonstrations  of  the 
opponents  of  the  famous  Stamp  Act  of  1766  were  made  there.     In  front 


•  This  little  picture  shows  tlie  appearance  of  the  Bowling  Green  and  its  vicinity,  soon  after  the  close 
of  the  war  for  independence.  Williia  the  enclosure  is  seen  the  pedestal  on  wdiich  stood  the  statue  of 
the  king.  Near  it,  the  Kennedy  House,  mentioned  in  tJie  text,  and  beyond  it,  Foit  George,  the  Bay  cf 
New  York,  Governor's  Island,  and  the  Narrows,  on  the  left,  and  Staten  Island  bounding  most  of  tlie 
horizon,  in  the  distance. 


430  THE    HUDSON. 


of  the  fort,  Lieutenant-Governor  Coltlen's  fine  coach,  his  effigy,  and  the 
■wooden  railing  around  the  Bowling  Green,  were  made  materials  for  a  great 
honfire  by  the  mob. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  war  for  independence.  Fort  George  and  its 
dependencies  had  three  batteries, — one  of  four  guns,  near  the  Bowling 
Green  ;  another  (the  Grand  Battery)  of  twenty  guns,  where  the  flag-staff 
on  the  Battery  now  stands ;  and  a  third  of  two  heavy  guns  at  the  foot  of 
White  Hall  Street,  called  the  White  Hall  Battery.  Here  the  boldness  of 
the  Sons  of  Liberty  was  displayed  at  the  opening  of  the  revolution,  by  the 
removal  of  guns  from  the  battery  in  the  face  of  a  cannonade  from  a  British 
ship  of  war  in  the  harbour.  From  here  was  witnessed,  by  a  vast  and 
jubilant  crowd,  the  final  departure  of  the  British  army,  after  the  peace  of 
1783,  and  the  unfurling  of  the  banner  of  the  Republic  from  the  flag-staff 
of  Fort  George,  over  which  the  British  ensign  had  floated  more  than  six 
years.  The  anniversary  of  that  day — "  Evacuation  Day  " — (the  25th  of 
November)  is  always  celebrated  in  the  city  of  New  York  by  a  military 
parade  and  feu  dejoie. 

Fort  George  and  its  dependencies  have  long  ago  disappeared,  but  the 
ancient  Bowling  Green  remains.  An  equestrian  statue  of  George  the 
Third,  made  of  lead,  and  gilded,  was  placed  upon  a  high  pedestal,  in  the 
centre  of  it,  in  1770.  It  was  ordered  by  the  Assembly  of  the  province  in 
176G,  in  token  of  gratitude  for  the  repeal  of  the  odious  Stamp  Act.  The 
Green  was  then  enclosed  with  an  iron  paling.*  Only  six  years  later,  on 
the  evening  when  the  Declaration  of  Independence  was  read  to  Washing- 
ton's army  in  New  York,  soldiers  and  citizens  joined  in  pulling  down  the 
statue  of  the  king.  The  round  heads  of  the  iron  fence-posts  were 
knocked  off  for  the  use  of  the  artillery,  and  the  leaden  statue  of  his 
Majesty  was  made  into  bullets  for  the  use  of  the  republican  army.  "  His 
troops,"  said  a  writer  of  the  day,  referring  to  the  king,  "will  probably 
have  melted  majesty  fired  at  them."  The  pedestal  of  the  statue,  seen  in 
the  engraving,  remained  in  the  Bowling  Green  some  time  after  the  war: 


♦  Tliis  work  of  art  was  by  Wilton,  ot  London,  and  was  the  first  eiiueatrian  statue  of  his  Majesty 
ever  erected.  Wilton  made  a  curious  omission— stirrups  were  wanting.  It  was  a  common  remark  of 
the  Continental  soldiers,  that  it  was  proper  for  "  the  tyrant "  to  ride  a  hard  trotting  horse  without 
stirrups. 


THE    HUDSON. 


431 


and  the  old  iron  railing,  with  its  decapitated  posts,  is  still  there.  A 
fountain  of  Croton  water  occupies  the  site  of  the  statue ;  and  the 
surrounding  disc  of  green  sward,  where  the  citizens  amused  themselves 
with  bowling,  is  now  shaded  by  magnificent  trees. 

Near  the  Bowling  Green,  across  Broadway  (No.  1),  is  the  Kennedy 


THE  BOWLIXC;  GKEEN   IN   1SI51. 


House,  where  "Washington  and  General  Lee,  nnd  afterwards  Sir  Henry 
Clinton,  Generals  Robertson  and  Carleton,  and  other  British  officers,  had 
their  head-quarters.  It  has  been  recently  altered  by  an  addition  to  its 
height.* 


*  This  house  was  built  hy  Captain  Kennedy,  of  the  Koyal  Navy,  at  about  tlie  time  of  his  maiTiage 
with  the  daughter  of  Peter  Schuyler,  of  Xew  Jersey,  in  176.5. 


432 


THE    HUDSON. 


The  present  Battery  or  park,  looking  out  upon  the  bay  of  JsTew  York, 
was  formed  early  in  the  present  century ;  and  a  castle,  pierced  for  heavy 
guns,  was  erected  near  its  western  extremity.  For  many  years,  the 
Battery  was  the  chief  and  fashionable  promenade  for  the  citizens  in  summer 
weather ;  and  State  Street,  along  its  town  border,  was  a  very  desirable 
place  of  residence.     The  castle  was  dismantled,  and  became  a  place  of 


"■^'".h. 


THE  BATTEHY  AND  CASTIE   G.IEDEN. 


public  amusement.  For  a  long  time  it  was  known  as  Castle  Garden  ;  but 
both  are  now  deserted  by  fashion  and  the  Muses.  All  of  old  New  York 
has  been  converted  into  one  vast  business  mart,  and  there  are  very  few 
respectable  residences  within  a  mile  of  the  Battery.  At  the  present  time 
(September,   1861),  it  exhibits  a  martial  display.     Its  green  sward  is 


THE   HUDSON. 


433 


covered  with  tents  and  barracks  for  the  recruits  of  the  Grand  Ifational 
Army  of  Volunteers,  and  its  fine  old  trees  give  grateful  shade  to  the 
newly-fledged  soldiers  preparing  for  the  war  for  the  Union. 

At  White  Hall,  on  the  eastern  border  of  the  Battery,  there  was  a  great 
civic  and  military  display,  at  the  close  of  April,  1789,  when  "Washington, 


OLD  FEDEBAl.  HALL. 


coming  to  the  seat  of  government  to  be  inaugurated  first  President  of  the 
United  States,  landed  there.  He  was  received  by  officers  and  people  with 
shouts  of  welcome,  the  strains  of  martial  music,  and  the  roar  of  cannon. 
He  was  then  conducted  to  his  residence  on  Franklin  Square,  and 
afterwards  to  the  Old  Federal  Hall  in  Wall  Street,  where  Congress  held 
its  sessions.    It  was  at  the  comer  of  "Wall  and  Nassau  Sti-eets,  the  site  on 

3   K 


434 


THE   HUDSON. 


■which  a  fine  marble  building  was  erected  for  a  Custom  House,  and  which 
is  now  us(h1  for  the  purposes  of  a  branch  Mint.  In  the  gallery,  in  front 
of  the  hall,  the  President  took  the  oath  of  office,  administered  by 
Chancellor  Livingston,  in  the  presence  of  a  great  assemblage  of  people  who 
filled  the  street. 

The  Hudson  from  the  Battery,  northward,  is  lined  with  continuous 
piers  and  slips,  and  exhibits  the  most  animated  scenes  of  commercial  life. 
The  same  may  be  said  of  the  East  Eiver  for  about  an  equal  distance  from 


HDDBON  EIVER  STEAMERS  LEAVING  MEW  YOKK. 


the  Battery.  Huge  steam  ferry-boats,  magnificent  passenger  steamers, 
and  freight  barges,  ocean  steamships,  and  every  variety  of  sailing  vessel 
and  other  water  craft  may  be  seen  in  the  Hudson  Eiver  slips,  or  out  upon 
the  bosom  of  the  stream,  fairly  jostling  each  other  near  the  wharves 
because  of  a  lack  of  room.  Upon  every  deck  is  seen  busy  men ;  and  the 
yo-heavc-o  !  is  heard  at  the  capstan  on  all  sides.  But  the  most  animated 
scene  of  all  is  the  departure  of  steamboats  for  places  on  the  Hudson,  from 
four  to  six  o'clock  each  afternoon.     The  piers  are  filled  with  coaches, 


THE    HUDSON.  435 


drays,  carts,  barrows,  every  kind  of  vehicle  for  passengers  and  light  freight. 
Orange-women  and  news-boys  assail  you  at  every  step  with  the  cries  of 
"Five  nice  oranges  for  a  shilling!" — •" 'Era's  the  Evening  Post  and 
Express,  third  edition  !  "  whilst  the  hoarse  voices  of  escaping  waste-steam, 
and  the  discordant  tintinnabulation  of  a  score  of  bells,  hurry  on  the 
laggards  by  warnings  of  the  near  approach  of  the  hour  of  departure. 
Several  bells  suddenly  cease,  when  from  different  slips,  steamboats  covered 
with  passengers  will  shoot  out  like  race-horses  from  their  grooms,  and 
turning  their  prows  northward,  begin  the  voyage  with  wonderful  speed, 
some  for  the  head  of  tide-water  at  Troy,  others  for  intermediate  towns, 
and  others  still  for  places  so  near  that  the  vessels  may  be  ranked  as  ferry- 
boats. The  latter  are  usually  of  inferior  size,  but  well  appointed  ;  and  at 
several  stated  hours  of  the  day  carry  excursionists  or  country  residents  to 
the  neighbouring  vUlages.  Let  us  consider  a  few  of  these  places,  on- the 
western  shore  of  the  Hudson,  which  the  stranger  would  find  pleasant  to 
visit  because  of  the  beauty  or  grandeur  of  the  natural  scenery,  and  liistoric 
associations. 

The  most  remote  of  the  villages  to  which  excursionists  go  is  Nyaek, 
opposite  Tarrytown,  nearly  thirty  miles  from  New  York.  It  lies  on  the 
bank  of  the  Hudson  at  the  foot  of  the  Nyack  Hills,  which  are  broken 
ridges,  extending  several  miles  northward  from  the  Palisades.  Hack  of 
the  village,  and  along  the  river  shore,  arc  fertile  and  well-cultivated 
slopes,  where  fruit  is  raised  in  abundance.  On  account  of  the  salubrity 
of  the  climate,  beautiful  and  romantic  scenery,  and  good  society,  it  is  a 
very  delightful  jjlace  for  a  summer  residence.  From  every  point  of  view 
interesting  landscapes  meet  the  eye.  The  broad  Tappan  Sea  is  before  it,  , 
and  stretching  along  its  shores  for  several  miles  are  seen  the  towns,  and 
villas,  and  rich  farms  of  Westchester  County.  In  its  immediate  vicinity 
the  huntsman  and  fisherman  may  enjoy  his  favourite  sport.  In  its 
southern  suburbs  is  the  spacious  building  of  the  Eockland  'Female 
Institute,  seen  in  our  sketch,  in  the  midst  of  ten  acres  of  land,  and 
affording  accommodation  for  one  hundred  pupils.  During  the  ten  weeks' 
summer  vacation,  it  is  used  as  a  first-class  boarding-house,  under  the 
title  of  the  Tappan  Zee  House. 

About  four  miles  below  Nyack  is  Piermont,  at  which  is  the  terminus  of 


436 


THE   HUDSON. 


the  middle  branch  of  the  New  York  and  Erie  Eailway.  The  village  is 
the  child  of  that  road,  and  its  life  depends  mainly  upon  the  sustenance  it 
receives  from  it.  The  company  has  an  iron  foundry  and  extensive 
repairing  shops  there ;  and  it  is  the  chief  freight  depot  of  the  road.  Its 
name  is  derived  from  a  pier  which  juts  a  mile  into  the  river.     From  it 


VIEW  KEAE  KYACK. 


freight  is  transferred  to  "cars  and  barges.     Tappantown,   where  Major 
Andi-e  was  executed,  is  about  two  miles  from  Piermont. 

A  short  distance  below  Piermont  is  Eockland,  a  post  village  of  about 
three  hundred  inhabitants,  pleasantly  situated  on  the  river,  and  flanked 
by  high  hills.  Here  the  Palisades  proper  have  their  northern  termination ; 
and  from  here  to  Fort  Lee  the  columnar  range  is  almost  unbroken.  This 
place  is  better  known  as  Sneeden's  Landing.     Here  Cornwallis  and  six 


THE   HUDSON.  437 


thousand  Britisli  trqops  landed,  and  marclied  upon  Fort  Lee,  on  the  top  of 
the  Palisades,  a  few  miles  below,  after  the  fall  of  Port  Washington,  in  the 
autumn  of  1776. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  points  on  the  west  shore  of  the  Hudson, 
near  New  York,  and  most  resorted  to,  except  Hoboken  and  its  vicinity,  is 
Fort  Lee.  It  is  within  the  domain  of  New  Jersey.  The  dividing  lino 
between  that  State  and  New  York  is  a  short  distance  below  Kookland  or 
Sneeden's  Landing ;  and  it  is  only  the  distance  between  there  and  its 
mouth  (about  twenty  miles)  that  the  Hudson  washes  any  soil  but  that  of 
the  State  of  New  York. 

The  village  of  Fort  Lee  is  situated  at  the  foot  of  the  Palisades.  A 
winding  road  passes  from  it  to  the  top  of  the  declivity,  through  a  deep, 
wooded  ravine.  The  site  of  the  fort  is  on  the  left  of  the  head  of  the 
ravine,  in  the  ascent,  and  is  now  marked  by  only  a  few  mounds  and  a 
venerable  pine-tree  just  south  of  them,  which  tradition  avers  once 
sheltered  the  tent  of  Washington.  As  the  great  patriot  never  pitched  his 
tent  there,  tradition  is  in  error.  Washington  was  at  the  fort  a  short  time 
at  the  middle  of  November,  1776,  while  the  combined  British  and  Hessian 
forces  were  attacking  Fort  Washington  on  the  opposite  shore.  He  saw 
the  struggle  of  the  garrison  and  its  assailants,  without  ability  to  aid  his 
friends.  When  the  combat  had  continued  a  long  time,  he  sent  word  to 
the  commandant  of  the  fort,  that  if  he  could  hold  out  until  night,  he 
could  bring  the  garrison  off.  The  assailants  were  too  powerful ;  and 
Washington,  with  Generals  Greene,  Mercer,  and  Putnam,  and  Thomas 
Paine,  the  influential  political  pamphleteer  of  the  day,  was  a  witness  of 
the  slaughter,  and  saw  the  red  cross  of  St.  George  floating  over  the  lost 
fortress,  instead  of  the  Union  stripes  which  had  been  unfurled  there  a  few 
months  before.  The  title  of  Fort  Washington  was  changed  to  that  of  Fort 
Knyphausen,  in  honour  of  the  Hessian  general  who  was  engaged  in  its 
capture.  Fort  Lee  was  speedily  approached  by  the  British  under 
Cornwallis,  and  as  speedily  abandoned  by  the  Americans.  The  latter  fled 
to  the  Republican  camp  at  Hackensack,  when  Washington  commenced  his 
famous  retreat  through  New  Jersey,  from  the  Hudson  to  the  Delaware, 
for  the  purpose  of  saving  the  menaced  federal  capital,  Philadelphia. 

The  view  from  the  high  point  north  of  Fort  Lee  is  extensive  and 


438 


THE    HUDSON. 


interesting,  up  and  down  the  river.  Across  are  seen  the  villages  of 
Carmansville  and  Manliattanvillc,  and  fine  country  scats  near ;  while 
southward,  on  the  left,  the  fitv  of  New  York  stretches  into  the  dim 


% 


TIEW  FEOM  FORT  LEE. 


distance,  with  Statcn  Island  and  the  Narrows  still  beyond.  On  the 
right  are  the  wooded  cliffs  extending  to  Hoboken,  with  the  little  villages 
of  Pleasant  Valley,  Bull's  Ferry,  "Wcehawk,  and  Hoboken,  along  the 
shore. 


CHAPTEE     XXIII. 

EOUT  three  miles  below  Fort  Lee  is  Bull's  Ferry, 
a  village  of  a  few  houses,  and  a  great  resort  for 
the  working-people  of  ISTew  York,  when  spending 
a   leisure   day.      The  steep,   wooded  hank  rises 
abruptly  in  the  rear,  to  an  altitude  of  about  two 
hundred  feet.     There,  as  at  Weehawk,  are  many 
pleasant  paths  through  the  woods  leading  to  vistas 
through  which  glimpses  of  the  city  and  adjacent  waters  are 
obtained.     Hither  pic-nic  parties  come  to  spend  warm  summer 
days,  where — 

''  Oveiliead 
Tlie  branches  arcli,  ami  ^llal)e  a  pleasant  bower, 
Breaking  white  clouil,  blue  sky,  aiid  sunsliino  bi  ipht. 
Into  pnre  iviiry  and  sapphire  spot.". 
And  tloeks  vf  gold ;  a  soft,  cool  emerald  tint 
C'olonrs  tlie  air,  as  though  llie  delicate  leaves  , 

Emitted  sclf-bcrn  li>:lit." 


Our  little  sketch  of  Bull's  Ferry  is  taken  fi-om  Weehawk  "Wharf,  and 
sliows  the  point  on  which  was  a  block-house  during  the  revolution ;  from 
that  circumstance  it  has  always  been  called  lilock-house  Point.  Its 
history  has  a  melancholy  interest,  as  it  is  connected  with  that  of  the 
unfortunate  Major  Andre.  In  the  summer  of  1780,  a  few  weeks  before 
the  discovery  of  Arnold's  treason,  that  block-house  was  occupied  by  a 
British  picket,  for  the  protection  of  some  woodcutters,  and  the  neigh- 
bouring New  Jersey  loyalists.  On  Bergen  Xeck  below  was  a  large 
number  of  cattle  and  horses,  belonging  to  the  Americans,  within  reach  of 
the  foragers  who  might  go  out  from  the  British  post  at  Puulus's  Hook, 
now  Jersey  City.  Washington's  head-quarters  were  then  inland,  near 
Eamapo.  He  sent  General  Wayne,  with  some  Pennsylvanian  and  Mary- 
land troops,  horse  and  foot,  to  storm  the  block-house,  and  to  drive  the 


440 


THE   HUDSON. 


cattle  -within  tlic  American  lines.  "Wayne  sent  the  cavalry,  under  Major 
Henry  Lee,  to  perform  the  latter  duty,  whilst  he  and  three  Pennsylvanian 
regiments  marched  against  the  block-house  with  four  pieces  of  cannon. 
They  made  a  spirited  attack,  but  their  cannon  were  too  light  to  be 
effective,  and,  after  a  skirmish,  the  Americans  were  repulsed  with  a  loss 
of  sixty  men,  killed  and  wounded.    After  burning  some  wood-boats  near. 


^^^=^- 


BULLS  FEKKY. 


and  capturing  those  who  had  them  in  charge,  "Wayne  returned  to  camp 
with  a  large  number  of  cattle  driven  by  the  dragoons. 

This  event  was  the  theme  of  a  satirical  poem,  in  three  cantos,  in  the 
ballad  style,  written  by  Major  Andre,  and  published  in  Rivington'sifoyn/ 
Gazette,  in  the  city  of  New  York.     The  following  is  a  correct  copy,  made 


THE    HUDSON.  441 


by  the  writer  for  his  Pictoiual  Field  Book  of  the  Revolution,  in  1850, 
from  an  original  in  the  hand-writing  of  Major  Andre.  It  was  written 
upon  small  folio  paper.     The  poem  is  entitled 

THE  cow  CHASE. 
Canto  I. 

To  drive  the  kine  one  summer's  morn, 

The  tanner*  took  his  way; 
The  calf  shall  rue,  that  is  unborn. 

The  yiunbling  of  that  day. 

And  Waj-ne  descending  steers  shall  know 

And  tauntingly  deride, 
And  call  to  mind,  iu  every  low, 

The  tanning  of  his  hide. 

Yet  Bergen  cows  still  ruminate 

Unconscious  in  the  stall, 
What  mighty  means  were  used  to  get 

And  lose  them  after  all. 

For  many  heroes  bold  and  brave 

From  New  Bridge  and  Tapaan, 
And  those  that  drink  Passaic's  wave, 

And  those  that  eat  soupaan ;  t 

And  sons  of  distant  Delaware, 

And  still  remoter  Shannon, 
And  Major  Lee  with  horses  rare. 

And  Proctor  with  his  cannon  ;  % 

All  wondrous  proud  in  arms  they  came— 

What  hero  could  refu;e. 
To  tread  the  rugged  path  to  fame, 

Whu  had  a  pair  of  shoes? 

At  six  the  host,  with  sweating  buff. 

Arrived  at  Freedom's  Pole, 
When  Wayne,  who  thought  he'd  time  enough, 

Tlius  speechified  the  whole  : 

'  0  ye  whom  glory  doth  unite, 

Who  Freedom's  cause  espouse, 
W^hether  the  wing  that's  doomed  to  fight, 

Or  that  to  drive  the  cows ; 


*  This  is  in  allusion  to  the  supposed  business  of  General  Wayne,  in  eariy  life,  who,  it  was  said,  was  a 
tanner.    He  was  a  surveyor. 

t  A  common  name  for  hasty- pudding,  made  of  the  meal  of  maize  or  Indian  corn. 

X  Miijor  Haiiy  Lee  was  commander  of  a  corps  of  light  horseman,  and  Colonel  Proctor  was  at  the  liead 
of  a  corps  of  ai'tillery. 

3    L 


442  THE   HUDSON. 


"  Ere  yet  you  tempt  your  further  way, 

Or  into  action  come, 
Hear,  soldiers,  what  I  have  to  say, 

And  take  u  pint  of  rum. 

"Iiitemp'rate  valour  then  will  string 
Eac-h  neiTous  arm  the  better. 

So  all  the  land  shall  10 !  sing, 
And  read  the  gen'ral's  letter. 

"  Know  that  some  paltry  lefugees, 

Whom  I've  a  mind  to  fight. 
Are  playing  h—1  among  the  trees 

That  grow  on  yonder  height. 

"  Their  fort  and  block-hnuse  we'll  level. 
And  deal  a  hoirid  slaugiiter ; 

We'll  drive  the  scoundrels  to  the  devil. 
And  ravish  wife  and  daughter. 

*'  I  under  cover  of  th'  attack. 

Whilst  you  are  all  at  blows, 
From  English  Neiglib'rhood  and  Tinack 

Will  drive  away  the  cows. 

"Fur  well  you  know  the  latter  is 

The  serious  operation, 
And  fighting  with  the  refugees 

Is  onlj'  demonstration.'' 

His  darlDg  words  from  all  the  crowd 
Such-great  applause  did  gain. 

That  eveiy  man  declared  aloud 
For  serious  work  with  Wa3'ne. 

Then  from  the  cask  of  rum  once  more 

They  took  a  heady  gill, 
When  one  and  all  they  loudly  swore 

They'd  fight  upon  the  hill. 

But  here— the  muse  has  not  a  strain 

Befitting  such  great  deeds, 
"  HuiTa,"  they  cried,  '■  hurra  for  WajTie! 

And,  shoufiiig — did  their  needs. 


Canto  II. 

Near  his  meridian  pomp,  Ilie  sun 
Hud  jouriiey'd  from  the  horizon. 

When  fierce  the  dusky  tribe  moved  on, 
Of  iieroes  drunk  as  poison. 

The  sounds  confused  of  boasting  oaths, 

Ee-echoed  through  the  wood, 
Some  vow'd  to  sleep  in  dead  men's  clothes, 

And  some  to  swim  in  blood. 


THE    UUDSON. 


443 


At  Irvine's  nod,*  'twas  fine  to  see 

Tlie  left  pi'cpared  to  fight, 
The  while  the  drovers,  \Vu3'ne  and  Lee, 

Drew  off  upon  the  right. 

Which  Irvine  'twas  Fame  don't  relate, 

Nor  can  the  Muse  assist  her, 
VVlielher  'twas  he  that  cocks  a  h:it, 

Or  he  that  gives  a  glister. 

For  greatly  one  was  signalised, 
That  fought  at  Cheslnut  Hill, 

And  Canada  immortdlised 
Tlie  vendor  of  the  pill. 

Yet  the  attendance  upon  Proctor 
They  borh  miglit  have  to  boast  of ; 

For  there  was  business  for  the  (loctor. 
And  hats  to  be  disposed  of. 

Let  none  uncaudidly  infer 

That  Stirling  wanted  spunk, 
The  self-made  peer  had  sure  been  tJicre, 
■  Eut  that  the  peer  was  drunk. f 

But  turn  we  to  the  Hudson's  banks, 
Where  stood  the  modest  train, 

With  purpose  firm,  though  slender  rank^ 
Nor  cared  a  pin  for  Wayne. 

For  then  the  unrelenting  hand 

Of  rebel  fury  di"o\e, 
And  tore  from  ev'ry  genial  band 

Of  friendship  and  of  love. 

And  some  within  a  dungeon's  gloom. 

By  mock  tribunals  laid, 
Had  waited  long  a  crliel  doom, 

Impending  o'er  their  head?. 

Here  one  bewails  a  brother's  fate, 

'1  here  one  a  sire  demands, 
Cut  off,  alas!  before  tlieir  date, 

By  ignominious  hands. 

And  silver'd  gi-andsires  here  appcar'd 

In  deep  distress  serene, 
Of  reverend  manners  tliat  declared 

The  better  days  they'd  seen. 

Oh!  cursed  rebellion,  these  are  thine. 
Thine  are  these  tales  of  woe ; 

Shall  at  thy  dire  insatiate  shrine 
Blood  never  cease  to  flow? 


^V^  or  thb"^^ 

[17jri7BRSITlfl 


*  General  William  Irvine,  of  Pennsylvania. 

t  William  Alexander,  who  unsuccessfully  claimed  the  title  of  the  Scotch  Earl  cf  Stirling 
believed  that  his  claim  was  just,  and  he  was  generally  called  *'  Lord  Stirling." 


444  THE   HUDSON. 


And  now  the  foe  beg;an  to  lead 

His  forces  to  tli'  attack  ; 
Balls  whistling  unto  balls  succeed, 

And  make  the  block-house  crack. 

No  shot  could  pass,  if  you  will  take 

The  gen'ral's  word  for  true  ; 
But  'tis  a  d— ble  mistake, 

For  evry  shot  went  through. 

The  fu-mcr  as  the  rebels  pressed, 

The  loyal  Iieroes  stand  ; 
Vii'tue  had  nerved  each  lionest  breast. 

And  Industry  each  hand. 

In  valour's  frenzy,  Hamilton 

Rode  like  a  soldier  big. 
And  secretary  Harrison, 

With  pen  stuck  in  his  wig." 

But,  lest  chieftain  Wushingtun 
.Should  mourn  them  in  the  munips,t 

The  fate  of  Withrington  to  shun, 
They  fought  behind  the  stumps. 

But  ah!  Tliaddeus  Posset,  why 

Should  thy  poor  soul  elope? 
And  why  should  Titus  Hooper  die, 

Ah !  die— without  a  rope  P 

Apostate  Murphy,  thou  to  wliom 

Fair  Shela  ne'er  was  cruel ; 
In  death  shall  /tear  her  motnn  thy  doom, 

Och !  would  ye  die,  my  jewel  P 

Tliee,  Nathan  Pumpkin,  I  lament, 

Of  melancholy  fate. 
The  gray  goose,  stolen  as  he  went, 

In  his  heart's  blooil  was  wet. 

Now  as  the  fiyht  was  further  fought. 

And  balls  began  to  thicken, 
The  fray  assumed,  the  gen'rals  thought, 

The  colour  of  a  licking. 

Yet  undismay'd  the  chiefs  command, 

And,  to  redeem  the  day, 
Cry,  "  Soldiers,  charge !  "  they  hear,  they  stand. 

They  turn  and  run  away. 

Canto  III. 

Not  all  delights  the  bloody  spear. 

Or  horrid  din  of  battle, 
There  are,  I'm  sure,  who'd  like  to  hear 

A  word  about  the  rattle. 


*  Colonels  Himiilton  and  Harrison,  of  Washington's  staff. 

t  A  painful  swelling  of  the  glands,  then  prevalent  in  the  RepubHcan  army. 


TflE   HUDSON.  445 


The  chief  whom  we  beheld  of  late, 

Near  Schralenberg  haranguing, 
At  Yan  Van  Poop's  unconscious  sat 

Of  Irvine's  hearty  banging. 

While  vitliant  Lee,  with  courage  wild, 

Most  bravely  did  oppose 
The  teare  of  women  and  of  child. 

Who  begg'd  he'd  leave  tlie  cows. 

But  Wayne,  of  sj'mpathising  heart, 

Required  a  relief, 
Not  all  the  blessings  could  mipart 

Of  battle  or  of  beef. 

For  now  a  prey  to  female  chanus, 

His  soul  took  more  delight  in 
A  lovely  Haraadiyad's  arms 

Than  cow  dnving  or  fighting. 

A  nymph,  the  refugees  had  druve 

Far  from  her  native  tree, 
Just  happen'd  to  be  on  the  move. 

When  up  came  Wayne  and  Lee. 

She  in  mad  Anthony's  fierce  eye 

The  hero  saw  portray'd, 
And,  all  in  tears,  she  took  hmi  by 

—The  bridle  of  his  jade. 

"Hear,"  said  the  nj-mph,  "  O  great  commun  'er. 

No  human  lamentations. 
The  trees  j-ou  see  them  cutting  yonder 

Are  all  my  near  relations. 

"And  I,  forlorn,  implore  thine  aid 

To  free  the  sacred  grove: 
So  shall  thy  prowess  be  repaid 

With  an  iimnortal's  love." 

Now  some,  to  prove  she  was  a  goddess ! 

Said  this  enchanting  fair 
Had  late  retired  from  the  Bodies,^ 

In  all  the  pomp  of  war. 

That  drums  and  merry  fifes  had  play'd 

To  honovn-  her  retreat, 
And  Cunningham  himself  convey'd 

The  lady  thi'ougli  the  street. 

Great  Wayne,  by  soft  compassion  sway'd, 

To  no  inquiry  stoops, 
But  takes  the  fair,  affliclel  maid 

Bight  into  Yan  Van  Poop's. 


U(j 


THE    HUDSON. 


So  lloman  Antliony,  they  snj', 
Disjiraced  Hi'  imperial  banner, 

And  for  a  gipsy  lost  a  day, 
Like  Anthony  the  tanner. 

The  Hamadr>'ad  had  but  half 
Received  redress  from  Wayne, 

When  dnima  and  colours,  cow  and  calf, 
Came  down  the  road  amain. 

All  in  a  cloud  of  dust  were  seen. 
The  sheep,  the  horse,  the  goat, 

The  gentle  heifer,  ass  obscene, 
The  yearling  and  the  shoat. 

And  pack-horses  with  fowls  ctinie  by, 

Befeathei'ed  on  each  side, 
Like  Pegasus,  the  horse  that  I 

And  other  poets  ride. 

Sublime  upon  the  stirrups  rose 

Tlie  mighty  Lee  behind, 
And^drove  the  terror-smitten  cows, 

Like  chaff  before  the  wind. 

But  sudden  see  the  woods  above 

Pour  down  another  corps, 
All  belter  skelter  in  a  drove. 

Like  that  I  sung  before. 

Irvine  and  terror  in  the  van. 

Came  fl3'ing  all  abroad, 
And  cannon,  colours,  horse,  and  man. 

Ran  tumbling  to  the  road. 

Still  as  be  fled,  'twas  Irvine's  cry. 

And  his  example  too, 
"  Run  on,  ray  meny  men  all— for  why  V ' 

The  shot  will  ]iot  go  Ihrongh.* 

As  when  two  kennels  in  the  street, 

S weird  with  a  recent  rain, 
In  gushing  streams  together  meet, 

And  seek  the  neighbouring  drain ; 

So  meet  these  dung-born  tribes  in  one, 

As  swift  in  their  career, 
And  so  to  New  Bridge  they  ran  on — 

But  all  the  covra  got  clear. 


Five  refugees  ('tis  true)  were  found 
Stiff  on  the  block-house  floor. 

But  then  'tis  tlmught  the  shot  went  round, 
And  in  at  the  back  door. 


THE    HUDSON,  447 


Poor  Parson  Caldwell,*  all  in  wonder, 

Saw  the  returning  train, 
And  mournM  to  Wayne  the  lack  of  plunder. 

For  them  to  steal  a^ain. 

For  'twiis  his  riglit  to  seize  the  spoil,  and 
To  share  with  each  commander, 

As  he  had  done  at  Staten  Island 
With  frost-bit  Alexander. T 

In  his  dismaj',  the  frantic  priest 

Began  to  grow  prophetic, 
Ynu  had  swore,  to  see  his  lab'ring  breast. 

He'd  taken  an  emetic. 

"I  view  a  future  day,"  said  he, 
"  Brighter  thiui  this  day  dark  is. 

And  you  shall  see  what  you  shall  see. 
Ha!  ha!  one  pretty  maniuis ;!: 

'■  And  he  shall  come  to  Paulas'  Hook,  $ 
And  great  achievements  think  on. 

And  make  a  bow  aiid  take  a  look, 
Like  Satan  over  Lincoln. 

"  And  all  the  land  around  shall  glory 

To  see  the  Frenclmian  caper. 
And  pretty  Susan  tell  the  story 

In  the  next  Chatham  paper." 

This  solemn  prophecy,  of  course, 

Gave  all  much  consolation. 
Except  to  WajTie,  who  lost  his  horse. 

Upon  the  great  occasion  : 

Hid  horse  that  carried  all  his  prog, 

His  military  speeches. 
His  corn-stalk  whisky  for  his  gi'og  — 

Blue  stockings  and  brown  breeches. 

And  now  I  ve  closed  my  epic  strain, 

I  tremble  as  I  show  it, 
Lest  this  same  warrio-drover,  Wayne, 

Should  ever  catch  the  poet. 


It  has  been  remarked  as  a  curious  coincidence,  that  on  the  day  when 
the  last  canto  of  the  above  poem  was  published  in  E.ivington's  Gazette, 
Major  Andre  was  arrested ;  and  that  General  "Wayne,  so  ridiculed  in  it, 
and  who  is  so  peculiarly  alluded  to  in  the  last  stanza,  was  the  commander 
of  the  military  force  from  which  was  detailed  the  guard  that  accompanied 


■  A  patriotic  preacher  of  the  Gospel,  at  Elizabethtown,  New  Jereey,  who  was  afterwards  murdered, 
t  William  Alexander,  Lord  Stu-Iing.         %  The  Marquis  de  Lafayette.   '         $  New  Jersey  city. 


448 


THE   HUDSON. 


the  gifted  young  officer  to  the  scaflfold.  On  the  autograph  copy  from 
which  I  copied  the  poem,  and  which  Andre  dated  "  Elizabeth  town  [New 
Jersey],  August  1,  1780,"  were  the  following  lines: — 

"  Wlien  this  epic  strain  w;xs  sung, 
Tlie  poet  by  the  neck  was  hung  ; 
And  to  his  cout  he  finds  too  late. 
The  '  dung-born  tribe '  decides  Iiis  fate." 

The  next  village  below  Bull's  Ferry  is  Weehawk,*  a  place  of  great 


DUELLING   GEOUKD— WEEHAM'K. 


resort  in  summer  by  pleasure  seekers  from  the  metropolis.     It  is  made 


*  Tliis  is  an  Indian  woi-,1,  and  is  llnis  spelt  in  its  purity.  The  Dutch  spelt  it  Wichachan,  and  it  is 
now  commonly  written  Weehawken ;  I  have  adopted  the  orthography  that  expresses  the  pure  Indian 
prunuiiciation. 


THE   HUDSON. 


449 


famous  by  its  connection  -witli  the  duelling  ground  where  General 
Alexander  Hamilton,  one  of  the  founders  of  the  Republic,  was  mortally 
wounded  in  single  combat,  by  Aaron  Burr,  then  Vice-President  of  the 
United  States.  They  were  bitter  political  foes.  "Without  just  provoca- 
tion, in  the  summer  preceding  an  important  election.  Burr,  anxious  to 
have  Hamilton  out  of  his  way,  challenged  him  to  fight.  The  latter,  out 
of  unnecessary  respect  for  a  barbarous  public  opinion,  accepted  the  chal- 
lenge ;  and  early  in  the  morning  of  the  11th  of  July,  1804,  they  and 
friends  crossed  the  Hudson  to  "Wcehawk,  and  stood  as  foes  upon  the 
duelling  ground.  Hamilton  was  opposed  to  duelling ;  and,  pursuant  to 
his  previous  resolution,  did  not  fire  his  pistol.  The  malignant  Burr  took 
deliberate  aim,  and  fired  with  fatal  precision.  Hamilton  lived  little  more 
than  thirty  hours.  His  death  produced  the  most  profound  grief  througli- 
out  the  nation.  Burr  lived  more  than  thirty  years,  a  fugitive,  like  Cain, 
and  sufiering  the  bitter  scorn  of  his  countrymen.  This  crime,  added  to 
his  known  vices,  made  him  thoroughly  detested,  and  few  men  had  the 
courage  to  avow  themselves  his  friend.  A  monument  was  erected  to  the 
memory  of  Hamilton,  on  the  spot  where  he  fell.  It  was  afterwards 
destroyed  by  some  marauder.  The  place  is  now  a  rough  one,  on  the 
margin  of  the  river,  and  is  marked  by  a  rude  arm-chair  or  sofa  (seen  in 
our  sketch,  in  which  we  are  looking  up  the  river)  made  of  stones.  On 
one  of  them  the  half-effaced  names  of  Hamilton  and  Burr  may  be  seen. 

The  next  place  of  interest  below  "VYeehawk  is  that  known  in  former 
times  as  the  Elysian  Fields.  I  remember  it  as  a  delightful  j-etreat  at 
"  high  noon,"  or  by  moonlight,  for  those  who  loved  Nature  in  her  quiet 
and  simple  forms.  Then  there  were  stately  trees  near  the  bank  of  the 
river,  and  from  their  shades  the  eye  rested  upon  the  busy  surface  of  the 
stream,  or  the  busier  city  beyond.  There,  on  a  warm  summer  afternoon, 
or  a  moonlit  evening,  might  be  seen  scores  of  both  sexes  strolling  upon 
the  soft  grass,  or  sitting  upon  the  green  sward,  recalling  to  memory  many 
beautiful  sketches  of  life  in  the  early  periods  of  the  world,  given  in  the 
volumes  of  the  old  poets.  All  is  now  changed ;  the  trips  of  Charon  to 
the  Elysian  Fields  are  suspended,  and  the  grounds,  stripped  of  many  of 
the  noble  trees,  have  become  "private,"  and  subjected  to  the  manipula- 
tions of  the  "real  estate  agent."     Even  the  Sibyl's  Cave,  under  Castle 

3   M 


450 

THE   HUDSON. 

Point, 

at  the  southern 

boundary  of  the  Elysian  Fields — a  cool,  rocky 

cavern 

containing  a  spring — has  been  spoiled  by  the  clumsy  hand  of  Art. 

The 

low  promontory 

below  Castle  Point  was  the   site  of  the   large 

< 

-T^        -    -^~I- 

,  -^SeSf'^^i^-^^---            .^^^- 

i 

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^^WR    T^^^tiM.'^ffl'Si.^* 

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VIEW  AT  THE  ELTSIAN  FIELDS. 

Indian  village  of  Holock.     There  the  pleasant  little  city  of  Hoboken  now 

stands 

and  few  of  its  quiet  denizens  are  aware  of  the  dreadful  tragedy 

performed  in  that  vicinity  more  than  two  hundred  years  ago.     The  stoiy 

THE    HUDSON.  451 


may  be  related  in  few  ■words.  A  fierce  feud  had  existed  for  some  time 
between  the  New  Jersey  Indians  and  the  Dutch  on  Manhattan.  Several 
of  the  latter  had  been  murdered  by  the  former,  and  the  Hollanders  had 
resolved  on  vengeance.  At  length  the  fierce  Mohawks,  bent  on  procuring 
tribute  from  the  weaker  tribes  westward  of  the  Hudson,  came  sweeping 
down  like  a  gale  from  the  north,  driving  great  numbers  of  fugitives  upon 
the  Hackcnsacks  at  Hobock.  I^ow  was  the  opportunity  for  the  Dutch. 
A  strong  body  of  them,  with  some  Mohawks,  crossed  the  Hudson  at  mid- 
night, in  February,  1643,  fell  upon  the  unsuspecting  Indians,  and  before 
morning  murdered  almost  one  hundred  men,  women,  and  children.  Many 
were  driven  from  the  cliffs  of  Castle  Point,  and  perished  in  the  freezing 


SlEVii.NSS  FLOAllNG  BATTERV. 


flood.      At  sunrise  the  murderers  returned  to  New  Amsterdam,   with 
prisoners  and  the  heads  of  several  Indians. 

A  large  proportion  of  the  land  at  Hoboken  is  owned  by  the  Stevens 
family,  who  have  been  identified  with  steam  navigation  from  its  earliest 
triumphs.  The  head  of  the  family  laid  out  a  village  on  Hoboken  Point, 
m  1804.  It  has  become  a  considerable  city.  Members  of  the  same 
family  had  large  manufacturing  establishments  there  ;  and  for  several 
years  before  the  Civil  War  had  been  constructing,  upon  a  novel  plan,  a 
huge  floating  batteiy  for  harbour  defences,  for  the  government  of  the 
United  States,  and  more  than  a  million  of  dollars  had  already  been  spent 
in  its  construction,  when  the  war  broke  out.  It  had  been  utterly  shut  in 
from  the  public  eye,  until  a  very  short  time  before  that  event.  Our  space 
will  allow  nothing  more  than  an  outline  description  of  it.     It  is  a  vessel 


452  THE    HUDSON. 


seven  hundred  feet  long  (length  of  the  Great  Eastern),  covered  with 
Ijlates  of  iron  so  as  to  bo  absolutely  bomb  and  round  shot  proof.  It  is  to 
be  moved  by  steam  engines  of  sufficient  power  to  give  it  a  momentum 
that  will  cause  it  to  cut  a  man-of-war  in  two,  when  it  strikes  it  at  the 
waists.  It  will  mount  a  battery  of  sixteen  heavy  rifled  cannon  in  bomb- 
proof casemates,  and  two  heavy  columbiads  for  throwing  shells  will  be 
on  deck,  one  forward  and  one  aft.  The  smoke-pipe  is  constructed  in 
sliding  sections,  like  a  telescope,  for  obvious  purposes ;  and  the  huge 
vessel  may  be  sunk  so  that  its  decks  alone  will  be  above  the  water.  It 
is  to  be  rated  at  six  thousand  tons.  The  war  was  productive  of  a  variety 
of  iron-clad  vessels  far  more  effective  than  this  promises  to  be,  and  it  is 
probable  that  it  will  never  be  completed. 

Opposite  the  lower  part  of  the  city  of  New  York,  and  separated  from 
Hoboken  by  a  bay  and  marsh,  is  Jersey  City,  on  a  point  at  the  mouth  of 
the  Hudson,  known  in  early  times  as  Paulus's  or  Pauw's  Hook,  it  having 
been  originally  obtained  from  the  Indians  by  Michael  Pauw.  This  was 
an  important  strategic  point  in  the  revolution.  Here  the  British  esta- 
blished a  military  post  after  taking  possession  of  the  city  of  New  York  in 
1776,  and  held  it  until  August,  1779,  when  the  active  Major  Henry  Lee, 
mentioned  in  Andre's  satire  of  "The  Cow  Chase,"  with  his  legion,  sur- 
prised the  garrison,  killed  a  number,  and  captured  the  fort,  just  before 
the  dawn.  Now  a  flourishing  city — a  suburb  of  New  York — covers  that 
point.  Immense  numbers  of  travellers  pass  through  it  daily,  it  being  the 
terminus  of  several  important  railways  that  connect  with  New  York  by 
powerful  steam  ferry-boats.  Here,  too,  are  the  wharves  of  the  Cunard 
line  of  ocean  steamers.  Before  it  is  the  broad  and  animated  bay  of  New 
York,  forming  its  harbour,  and,  stretching  away  to  the  south-west,  nine 
miles  or  more,  is  Newark  Bay,  that  receives  the  Passaic  Eiver. 

Here  we  leave  the  Hudson  proper,  and  after  visiting  some  prominent 
places  in  the  vicinity  of  the  metropolis,  will  accompany  the  reader  to 
the  sea. 

Adjacent  to  Manhattan  Island,  and  separated  from  it  by  the  narrow 
East  Eiver,  is  Long  Island,  which  stretches  along  the  coast  from  "West 
to  East,  about  one  hundred  and  forty  miles.  It  is  rich  in  traditional, 
legendary,  and  historical  reminiscences.    Near  its  western  extremity,  and 


THE   HUDSON. 


453 


opposite  the  city  of  New  York,  is  the  large  and  beautiful  city,  of  Brooklyn,* 
whose  intimate  social  and  business  relations  with  the  metropolis,  and 
connection  by  numerous  ferries,  render  it  a  sort  of  suburban  town.  Its 
growth  has  been  wonderful.  Less  than  sixty  years  ago,  it  contained 
only  a  ferry-house,  a  few  scattered  dwellings,  and  a  church.  'Novf  it 
comprises  an  area  of  16,000  acres,  with  an  exterior  line  of  twenty-two 
miles.  Like  New  York,  it  has  absorbed  several  villages.  It  was  incor- 
porated a  village  in  1816,  and  a  city  in   1834.     Its  central  portion  is 


JERSEY   CITY  AND   C'L'NAED  HOCK. 


upon  a  range  of  irregular  hills,  fortified  during  the  revolution.  The 
bluff  on  which  Fort  Stirling  stood — now  known  as  "The  Heights" — is 
covered  with  fine  edifices,  and  affords  extensive  views  of  New  York  and 
its  harbour.  Williamsburgh,  which  had  become  quite  a  large  city,  was 
annexed  to  Brooklyn  in  1854.  Between  the  two  cities  is  Wallabout  Bay, 
the  scene  of  great  suffering  among  the  American  prisoners,  in  British 
prison-ships,   during  the  revolution.       Eleven  thousand   men  perished 


»  Fium  the  Dulch  Brcuct-lunJl—hwlien  laud. 


454 


THE  HUDSON. 


there,  and  their  remains  were  buried  in  shallo-w  graves  on  the  shore. 
Near  its  banks  was  born  Sarah  Eapclje,  the  first  child  of  European 
parents  that  drew  its  caiiiest  breath  within  the  limits  of  the  State  of  New 
York.*  Upon  that  aceldama  of  the  old  war  for  independence  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  Hudson,  is  now  a  dockyard  of  the  United  States  Govern- 
ment, which  covers  about  forty-five  acres  of  land.  Within  the  enclosure 
is  a  depository  of  curious  things,  broiight  home  by  officers  and  seamen  of 
the  navy,  and  is  called  the  Naval  Lyceum.     It  contains  a  fine  geological 


UROOKLVN   FERHY  ANiJ  HEIGHIS. 


cabinet,  and  a  library  of  several  thousand  volumes.  Upon  a  gentle  hill 
back  of  the  Navy  Yard  is  a  United  States  Marine  Hospital,  seen  in  our 
sketch. 

The  southern  portion  of  Brooklyn  lies  upon  low  ground,  with   an 
extensive  water  front.     There,  immense  commercial  works  have  been 


•  In  April,  1623,  thirty  families,  chiefly  Walloons  (French  Protestants  who  had  taken  refuge  in 
Holland),  arrivert  at  Manhattan,  in  charge  of  the  first  Governor  of  New  Netherland.  Eight  of  these 
families  went  up  the  Hudson,  and  settled  at  Alliany;  the  remainder  chose  their  place  of  abode  across 
the  channel  of  the  East  Eiver,  upon  lauds  now  covered  hy  a  portion  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn  and  the 
United  States  Navy  Yard. 


THE   HUDSON. 


455 


constructed,  known  as  the  Atlantic  Docks,  covering  forty  acres,  and 
affording  within  the  "slips"  water  of  sufficient  depth  for  vessels  of 
largest  size.  There  is  an  outside  pier,  three  thousand  feet  in  length,  and 
on  the  wharves  are  extensive  warehouses  of  granite.  These  wharves 
afford  perfect  security  from  depredators  to  vessels  loading  and  unloading. 
A  little  helow  Brooklyn,  and  occupying  a  portion  of  the  ground 
whereon  the  conflict  between  the  British  and  American  armies,  known  as 
the  battle  of  Long  Island,  was  fought,  at  the  close  of  the  summer  of 


KAVV   YARD,  BROOKLYN". 


1776,  is  Greenwood  Cemetery,  one  of  the  most  noted  burial-places  in  the 
country.  A  greater  portion  of  it  is  within  the  limits  of  the  city  of 
Brooklyn.  It  comprises  four  hundred  acres  of  finely  diversified  land. 
The  present  population  of  that  "  city  of  the  dead"  is  probably  not  less 
than  70,000.  One  of  the  most  delightful  places  within  its  borders  is 
Sylvan  "Water,  near  the  shores  of  which  may  be  seen  a  monument,  over 
the  grave  of  an  Indian  princess,  of  the  tribe  of  Min-ne-ha-ha,  the  bride  of 
Longfellow's  Ili-a-ivat-ha,  who  died  in  New  York  a  few  years  ago.     Also 


456 


THE   HUDSON. 


the  grave  of  M'Donald  Clarke,  known  in  New  York,  twenty  years  ago, 
as  the  "  Mad  Poet."  His  monument  is  seen  upon  a  little  hillock  in  our 
sketch  of  Sylvan  "Water.     Clarke  was  an  eccentric  child  of  genius.     He 


SYLVAN  WATER,   GBEENWOOI). 


became,  in  his  latter  years,  an  unhappy  wanderer,  with  reason  half 
dethroned,  a  companion  of  want,  and  the  victim  of  the  world's  neglect. 
His  proud  spirit  disdained  to  a.sk  food,  and  he  famished.     Society,  of 


THE   HUDSON. 


457 


■whom  his  necessities  asked  bread,  "  gave  him  a  stone  " — a  monument  of 
■white  marble,  -with  his  profile  in  bas-relief.  He  died  in  March,  1842. 
"  He  ■was  a  poet,"  says  his  biographer,  "  of  the  order  of  Nat  Lee  ;  one  of 
those  -wits,  in  ■whose  heads,  according  to  Dryden,  genius  is  divided  from 
madness  by  a  thin  partition."  * 

From  t-wo  or  three  prominent  points  in  Greenwood  Cemetery  fine 
vie^ws  of  'Nevr  York  city  and  bay  may  be  obtained,  but  a  better  compre- 
hension of  the  scenery  of  the  harbour,  and  adjacent  shores,  may  be  had 
in  a  voyage  do^wn  the  Bay  to  Staten  Island. f     This  may  be  accomplished 


govebnor's  and  BEDLOE'S  ISLAN1>S. 


many  times  a  day,  on  steam  ferry-boats,  from  the  foot  of  "Whitehall 
Street,  near  "The  Battery."  As  -we  go  out  from  the  "slip,"  we  soon 
obtain  a  general  vie^w  of  the  harbour.  On  the  left  is  Governor's  Island, 
■with  Castle  "WiUiams  upon  its  -western  extremity,  and  Fort  Columbus 


*  Duj'ckinck's     Cj'clopjedia  of  American  Literature." 

t  This  island  was  purchased  from  the  Indians  in  1630,  by  the  proprietor  of  tlie  land  on  which  Jersey 
city  now  stands,  and  all  of  that  vicinity.  It  reverted  to  the  Dutcli  West  India  Company,  when  it  was 
called  .Status  Eylandt,  or  the  State's  Island.  A  considerable  number  of  French  Protestants  (Huguenots), 
wlio  fled  to  America  after  the  revocation  of  the  Edict  of  Nantes,  settled  on  .Staten  Island.  The  British 
troops  took  possession  of  the  island  in  1776,  and  held  it  until  the  autumn  of  17S3. 

3    N 


t58 


THE    HUDSON. 


lying  upon  its  crown,  shaded  with  okl  Lomhardy  poplars.  On  the  right 
is  Bedloe's  Island,*  mostly  occupied  by  fort  Wood,  a  heavy  fortification, 
erected  in  1841.  Near  it  is  Ellis's  Island,  with  a  small  military  work, 
called  Tort  Gibson.  This  was  formerly  named  Gibbet  Island,  it  being 
then,  as  now,  tlie  place  for  the  execution  of  pirates.  These  islands 
belong  to  the  United  States.  The  forts  upon  them  were  used  as  prisons 
for  captured  soldiers  of  the  armies  in  rebellion  during  the  Civil  "War. 

Before  the  voyager  down  the  bay  lies  Staten  Island,  which,  with  the 
western  end  of  Long  Island,  presents  a  great  barrier  to  the  ocean  winds 


THE  NARROWS,  FROM  QUARANTINE. 


and  waves,  and  affords  a  shelter  to  vessels  in  the  harbour  of  Now  York 
from  the  tempest  outside.  It  is  nearly  oval-shaped,  fourteen  miles  in 
length,  and  eight  in  breadth.  It  was  heavily  wooded,  and  sparsely 
settled,  when  the  British  army  occupied  it,  in  the  summer  of  177C. 
Now,  the  hand  of  cultivation  is  everywhere  visible.  Its  shores  bordering 
on  New  York  Bay  are  dotted  with  lively  villages,  and  all  over  the'  broad 
range  of  hills  that  extend  from  the  Narrows,  across  the  island,  are  superb 


»  So  named  from  Isaac  Bociloc,  tlie  palenlee  under  Governor  Nicholson. 


THE   HUDSON. 


459 


country-seats,  and  neat  farmhouses.  It  is  a  favourite  place  of  summer 
residence  for  the  wealthy  and  business  men  of  'Sew  York — easy  of  access, 
and  salubrious.  These  country-seats  usually  overlook  the  bay.  The 
tourist  will  find  an  excursion  over  this  island  a  delightful  one. 

On  the  northern  extremity  of  Staten  Island,  the  State  of  New  York 
established  a  quarantine  as  early  as  1799,  and  maintained  it  untU  the 
beginning  of  September,  1858,  when  the  inhabitants  of  the  village  that 
had  grown  up  there,  and  of  the  adjacent  country,  who  had  long  petitioned 
for  its  removal  as  a  dangerous  nuisance,  destroyed  all  the  buildings  by 
fire.     There  had  been  more  than  five  hundred  cases  of  yellow  fever  there 


FORI   LAFAYETTE. 


two  years  before,  and  the  distress  and  alarm  created  by  that  contagion 
made  the  people  determine  to  rid  themselves  of  the  cause.  Since  the 
destruction  of  the  establishment,  a  hospital-ship,  to  serve  quarantine 
pirrposes,  has  been  anchored  in  the  lower  bay,  preparatory  to  some 
permanent  arrangement. 

Prom  the  Quarantine  Dock  may  be  obtained  an  excellent  view  of  the 
Narrows,  the  ship  channel  between  Long  and  Staten  Islands  through 
which  vessels  pass  to  and  from  the  sea.  Our  little  sketch  gives  a 
comprehensive  view  of  that  broad  gate  to  the  harbour  of  New  York.  On 
the  right  is  seen  Staten  Island,  with  the  new  and  substantial  battery  on 


460 


THE    HUDSON. 


the  water's  edge,  just  below  the  unfinished  Fort  Wadsworth  (formerly 
Port  Richmond).  On  the  left  is  the  Long  Island  shore,  with  Fort 
Hamilton  on  its  high  hank,  and  Fort  Lafayette,  formerly  Fort  Diamond, 
in  the  stream  below.  The  latter  fort  is  upon  Hendrick's  Keef,  two 
hundred  yards  from  the  Long  Island  shore.  It  was  commenced  in  1812, 
but  had  not  been  thoroughly  completed  when  the  Civil  War  commenced, 
although  3.50,000  dollars  had  been  spent  upon  it.  It  was  then  capable 
of  having  mounted  seventy-five  heavy  guns.     It  soon  became  famous  as  a 


i-ORT  UAMILTW. 


political  state  prison  in  which  many  citizens,  charged  with  disloyal, 
seditious,  and  treasonable  acts  toward  the  Government,  were  confined. 
Among  them  was  Mr.  Faulkner,  of  Virginia,  who  was  the  United  States 
minister  to  the  French  Court  during  Mr.  Buchanan's  administration  ;  the 
mayor  and  chief  of  police  of  Baltimore  ;  members  of  the  Maryland  legis- 
lature, and  the  mayor  of  Washington  city.  The  latter  was  released  after 
a  short  confinement,  on  taking  the  oath  of  allegiance. 

On  the  eastern  border  of  the  Narrows  stands  Fort  Hamilton,  a  strong 


THE   HUDSON. 


461 


fortification  completed  in  1832,  whcii  a  war  with  France  seemed  to  be 
impending.  It  was  enlarged  and  strengthened  during  the  Civil  "War. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  rebellion  it  mounted  sixty  heavy  guns  (a  portion 
of  them  en  larbette),  forty-eight  of  which  bore  upon  the  ship  channel. 
The  fort  is  elevated,  and  commands  the  Lower  Bay  from  the  K^arrows 
towards  Sandy  Hook.  This  work,  with  the  fortifications  on  the  opposite 
shore  of  Staten  Island,  and  the  water  battery  of  Fort  Lafayette  in  the 
channel,  render  the  position,  at  the  entrance  to  New  York  Bay,  almost 
impregnable. 

A  delightful  voyage  of  fifteen  minutes   in  a  steamer,  or  half  an  hour 


SUKF  BATHING,  CONEV  ISLAND. 


in  a  sail-boat,  will  take  us  to  Coney  Island,  once  a  peninsula  ef  Long 
Island  at  the  lower  end  of  Gravesend  Bay.  It  is  now  connected  with 
the  main,  by  a  good  road,  a  causeway,  and  a  bridge.  The  island  is  about 
five  miles  in  length,  and  one  in  width,  and  contains  about  sixty  acres  of 
arable  land.     The  remainder  is  made  up  of  sand  dunes,  formed  by  the 


462 


THE   HUDSON. 


action  of  the  winds.  These  resemble  snow-drifts,  and  are  from  five  to 
thirty  feet  in  height.  It  is  a  favourite  summer  resort  for  bathers,  its 
beach  being  unsurpassed.  Near  the  Pavilion,  at  its  western  end,  the 
scene  of  our  little  sketch,  the  beach  is  very  flat,  and  surf  bathing  is 
perfectly  safe.  There  crowds  of  bathers  of  both  sexes,  in  their  sometimes 
grotesque  dresses,  may  be  seen  every  pleasant  day  in  summer,  especially 
at  evening,  enjoying  the  water.  Kcfrcshmcnts  are  served  at  the  Pavilion 
near,  and  a  day  may  be  spent  there  pleasantly  and  profitably.  There  are 
two  or  three  summer  boarding-houses  at  the  other  end  of  the  island, 
which  may' be  reached  from  Brooklyn  in  the  space  of  forty-five  minutes, 
by  railways. 
Between  Coney  Island  and  Sandy  Hook,  is  an  expanse  of  wat^  r,  several 


SAMJr  HOOK,   FBOM  THK  OUII'   CUASXEL. 


miles  across,  in  which  is  the  sinuous  chaimel  followed  by  large  vessels 
in  their  entrance  to  and  exit  from  the  harbour  of  New  York  in  charge  of 
the  pilots.  To  the  right,  beyond  Earitan  Bay,  is  seen  the  New  Jersey 
shore;  while  southward,  in  the  blue  distance,  loom  up  the  Navesink 
Highlands,  on  which  stand  the  lighthouses  first  seen  by  the  voyager  from 
Europe,  when  approaching  the  port  of  New  York. 

Sandy  Hook  is  a  long,  low,  narrow  strip  of  sandy  land,  much  of  it 


THE   HUDSON. 


463 


covered  witli  shrubs  and  dwarf  trees.  It  is  about  five  miles  in  length, 
from  the  Navesink  Lights  to  its  northern  extremity,  whereon  are  two 
lighthouses.  It  is  the  southern  cape  of  Raritau  Bay,  and  has  twice  been 
an  island,  withiu  less  than  a  century.  An  inlet  was  cut  through  by  the 
sea  during  a  gale  in  1778,  but  closed  again  in  the  year  1800.     Another 


SASDY  HOOK,  FROM   THE  LIGHTHOUSKS. 


inlet  was  cut  in  1830,  and  for  several  years  it  was  so  deep  and  broad  that 
steamboats  passed  through  it.     That  is  now  closed. 

At  the  northern  extremity  of  Sandy  Hook,  the  United  States  are  now 
erecting  strong  fortifications.  These  will  materially  strengthen  the 
defences  of  the  harbour  of  New  York,  as  this  fort  will  command  the  ship 


464  THE   HUDSON. 


clianncl.  About  a  mile  below  the  pier,  near  the  lighthouse,  on  the  inner 
shore  of  the  Hook,  once  stood  an  elegant  monument,  erected  to  the 
memory  of  a  son  of  the  Earl  of  Morton,  and  thirteen  others,  who  ■were 
cast  away  near  there,  in  a  snow-storm,  during  the  revolution,  and 
perished.  All  but  one  were  officers  of  a  British  man-of-war,  wrecked 
there.  They  were  discovered,  and  buried  in  one  grave.  The  mother  of 
the  young  nobleman  erected  the  monument,  and  it  remained,  respected 
even  by  the  roughest  men  of  the  coast,  until  1808,  when  some  vandals, 
from  a  French  vessel-of-war,  landed  there,  and  destroyed  that  beautiful 
memorial  of  a  mother's  love. 

Here,  reader,  on  the  borders  of  the  great  sea,  we  will  part  company  for 
a  season.  "We  have  had  a  pleasant  and  memorable  journey  from  the 
Wilderness,  three  hundred  miles  away  to  the  northward,  where  the  forest 
shadows  eternally  brood,  and  the  wild  beasts  yet  dispute  for  dominion 
with  man.  We  have  looked  upon  almost  every  prominent  object  of 
Nature  and  Art  along  the  borders  of  the  Hudson,  and  have  eommuned 
profitably,  I  hope,  with  History  and  Tradition  on  the  way.  We  have 
seen  every  phase  of  material  progress,  from  Nature  in  her  wildest  forms, 
to  Civilisation  in  its  highest  development.  Our  journey  is  finished — our 
observations  have  ceased — and  here,  with  the  yielding  sand  beneath  our 
feet,  a  cloudless  sky  bending  over  us,  and  the  heaving  ocean  before  us— 

"The  seal  tlie  sea  !  Uie  open  sea! 
The  blue,  the  fi-o^h,  the  ever  free!" — 

WO  will  say  F.^eeweil  !  ,„fif:'^''^rr,   tT"^:^ 

f^    Of  THS 


THE    END 


IJiriVBRSITY] 


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